Passenger Trains > NJ Transit leases 'tired' train cars

I know the TO folks out west are already groaning at the possibility of these easterners going west. At least NJT is being honest! And I wonder if any of eight leased to SEPTA will be in the Altoona Railfest excursion consist this weekend?

At any rate, there will be many new nicknames for the Comet 1 cars in at least two languages.

-Richard
HG-Tower


http://www.utu.org/worksite/detail_news.cfm?ArticleID=42723

NJ Transit leases 'tired' train cars
Associated Press
July 7, 2008

TRENTON, N.J. — They're cramped and with about 40 years of wear and tear. But for transit agencies scrambling to meet higher demand, old NJ Transit rail cars don't seem like a bad deal right now.

Transit agencies across the country have been trying to meet higher demand as high gas prices cause people to take the train, instead of their cars, to work.

All of a sudden, the 104 Comet 1 train cars that NJ Transit is retiring seem like a pretty good deal.

"Tired is probably the best word to use to describe them, and that might be generous," NJ Transit spokesman Dan Stessel told The Star-Ledger of Newark.

SEPTA is leasing eight Comet 1 cars for two years at a cost of $15,000 per car, per year.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority in Montreal is paying about the same amount for at least 14 of the cars.

Officials from Metrolink in Southern California are expected in New Jersey in the coming week to negotiate a leasing agreement.

I'm not familiar with the Comet cars. Are they single level or double level? I'm wondering if all of the doors open up at once with the push of a button like on Caltrain, Metrolink, Amtrak California, etc, or are they manually operated one at a time?

Edit: I just did a search and found a good thread on this:

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?4,1704846,page=1

The Comet 1's are Push Pull cars with 2-3 seating and electric doors.
single level, built by Pullman.

$15,000 per year per car is pretty cheap. They must be in really bad condition for that price.

Todd Clark
Canyon Country, CA
Trainorders.com

Since NJ Transit has received new equipment and were just going to retire these, I have ridden in them on some of my NJT Trips and found these cars to be in great shape. They are all high loading cars with traps but I think most likely if Metrolink does lease them, one car would be added to each train behind the engine and passengers would be told to go back one car to exit. Thus you are adding seats but don't have to worry about opening the doors on each trip. A good solution to needing more seats ASAP!

Chris

They're in okay shape. I'd be happy to have 'em over, say, those tired old gallery cars from Chicago!

Actually as a NJT rider, I consider it a toss up between the old gallery cars and these NJT single level cars. The NJT cars certainly show their age, but some simple reconditioning with the interior could be done I suppose - even seat cushions etc. And if more legroom is needed over seating, I am sure some seats could be removed from the cars - but NJT would of course want the cars back in the same manner they were leased out. Hopefully NJT will find it beneficial to "lease" these cars for extra money rather than an outright sale. Might help NJT to generate some extra and much needed cash for the remainder of the fleet that presently operates on NJT rails - and what's to come (i.e. new electric motive power and dual modes).

The draft gear and buffers on these cars are well worn.
Also of eventual interest are that the first center doored Comets, which also have disk brakes, the Comet-III from around 1990, They will NOT get a mid-life rebuild, but will be sold as they lengthened the order of Multi-levels to replace them.