Jan 23, 2008 6:02 pm US/Central
New CTA Trains Will Appear On Tracks In 2009
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
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An artist's rendering of the interior of a new CTA train car.
CBS
Less than a week after surviving a brush with doomsday, the CTA announces a major upgrade. The transit agency unveiled new train cars that promise a more comfortable and safer ride. They'll replace some cars that date back to the 1960s, as CBS 2's Jim Williams reports.
The CTA has nearly 1,200 train cars – one-third of them eventually will be replaced. The new cars will feature 21st century technology, including video and wireless communications.
Some of the CTA's rail cars are nearly 40 years old with a lot of miles on them, but a change is coming with 406 new cars – the kinds of trains that are already operating in other cities.
"We want to make sure that the trains we're buying are based on industry best standards across the world," said CTA president Ron Huberman.
All the new cars should be on the tracks in the next four years; the first 10 are set to start running in 2009. Huberman promises they'll be more quiet, comfortable and secure. They'll be equipped with cameras and video screens, so train operators will be able to see what's happening in any car.
"So in the event of an emergency we can get immediate, real time help in the hands of people who need it to make our customers safer," Huberman said.
He said riders tell him all the time they want more information from the CTA, so if there's a problem with a train or a change in schedule, riders will hear about it instantly in the new cars.
"From a centralized control center, we can immediately send out to all trains both text messaging on screens for people to read and voice information about what's occurring," Huberman said.
So you might wonder how the CTA can afford $600 million worth of new cars, when it just narrowly avoided a doomsday budget? The CTA says it's getting state and federal grants that are only to be used for capital improvements.
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