(The following story by Mark Ginocchio appeared on the Stamford Advocate website on September 20.)
STAMFORD, Conn. — Metro-North Railroad officials last night unveiled interior designs of the next generation of New Haven Line rail cars, which they promoted as a stylish upgrade.
Once delivery of the new M8 cars begins at the end of 2009, New Haven Line commuters should find roomier seats, larger windows and better lighting compared with the current cars, Metro-North officials told the Connecticut Rail Commuter Council during its monthly meeting at the Stamford Government Center.
“These (designs) were not chosen on somebody’s whim,” said Cesar Vergara, a design consultant hired by Metro-North for the new rail car project. “This has been done very thoroughly.”
Vergara said he traveled the New Haven Line extensively, and rode on Metro-North’s Hudson and Harlem Lines in New York, to examine the pros and cons of their newest M7 rail cars, which were delivered about three years ago.
“These cars will be more architectural, instead of a box,” Vergara said, who described them as “a little gentler” than the current cars.
Input from focus groups Metro-North conducted on the new cars about a year ago factored into their decisions, said Timothy McCarthy, director of equipment and capital engineering for the railroad.
The railroad also used the M7 cars on the Hudson and Harlem lines as a base to improve on, he said.
For the car’s entrance, the M8 will contain a single-door panel design which has been used successfully on the Hudson and Harlem lines, McCarthy said.
The cars also will have larger windows and wider wind panels in the car’s vestibule, which will contain some advertising, but provide more visibility of the car for commuters and conductors working the train.
“The screens are as wide and deep as we can make it,” McCarthy said. “It’s for aesthetics, but also for some security reasons.”
The railroad was most excited about the seating, which will give passengers an extra inch of leg room. The 3-by-2 seating will contain head rests at equal heights and arm rests that are a drastic improvement over the M7 rests, which drew complaints for ripping the clothing of commuters.
“We ran these (seats) through the focus groups and these came out a winner,” McCarthy said. “The seats are very distinctive on these cars.”
Commuter council members said they were pleased by the new cars, though there were some complaints about the design of a six-seat cluster near the vestibule that would replace the five-seat cluster currently used on the New Haven Line.
“People already don’t sit in the five (seats) and now you’re adding sixes,” council member Jeffrey Maron said.
Vergara admitted it may not be the most comfortable area to sit on a crowded train, but as a designer he was responsible for trying to find as many seats as possible.
Within the next month or two, the railroad is planning seat drops with comment cards for commuters to give feedback about the designs.
If the railroad learns of “fatal flaws” in the proposals from these comment cards, there could be redesigns, McCarthy said.
Commuter council chairman Jim Cameron said he expects enthusiastic feedback.
“I think commuters will be excited when they see these,” he said. “I was very impressed by the entire presentation. I thought the cars looked great.”