MTA Board to Approve Option to Purchase Additional 435 R211 Subway Cars

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) New York City Transit Committee approved an order for 435 additional R211 subway cars, authorizing the full MTA Board to consider the order on Wednesday at their monthly meeting. This order includes 355 closed-end cars and 80 open-gangway cars. The option would bring the total number of R211 cars ordered to 1,610. There are currently 345 R211 cars in service throughout the New York City Transit system, including on the ​A and C​ lines and the Staten Island Railway.

Additionally, New York City Transit announced that beginning early next year, the agency will run at least two open-gangway trains on the ​G line, making it the second subway line to have open-gangway trains. G​ train customers will have a 1/5 chance of riding an open-gangway car. Open-gangway trains first operated on the C​ line earlier this year.

The R211s will eventually replace all R44s on the Staten Island Railway and the current fleet of R46 subway cars, which have been in service on the A ​and C​ lines as well as the ​​​​N Q R W line for decades. This new option will also allow NYC Transit to begin replacement of the R68s, which entered service in the mid-1980s and primarily operate on the B D N ​​​and W​. The new railcar has an average mean distance between failure (MDBF) rate of approximately 220,000 miles, compared to the R46’s 46,000 miles. The MDBF is a measure of how far the railcar can travel before a mechanical issue occurs and requires maintenance. Delivery is expected to begin in 2027.

This approval builds on the MTA’s ongoing efforts to modernize its entire fleet of rolling stock. The R211 features security cameras in every car, more accessible seating, brighter lights, clearer signage and 58-inch-wide door openings, which are eight inches wider than standard door openings on existing cars.