New CTA Rail Cars Back in Service on Monday

By Soyoung Kwak in Miscellaneous on Jul 11, 2010 5:30PM

It has been over a month since we last heard about the shiny new CTA rail cars that would eventually replace the currently used rail cars (which are thirty to forty years old). If you aren't familiar with the changes made to the rail car design, the new rail cars feature a sleeker interior design that has seats lined up against the walls of the cars to create more standing room for passengers. In addition, the new cars feature fancier amenities like electronic route maps.

The prototype 5000-series rail cars were pulled out from service after going from the Red Line to debuting on the Green Line in late May due to an issue with the rail cars' brake system. According to Fox News, the newly modified rail cars will return to in-service testing on the Green Line starting Monday. The CTA has made sure that the rail cars they were testing were the best and most thoroughly qualified:

"We undergo testing to ensure the CTA gets the best rail car possible. Revisions are part of the process," CTA President Richard Rodriguez said in the release. "Working with the manufacturer, a solution was successfully developed, thoroughly tested and has now been implemented."

The CTA will continue to test the rail cars on the rest of the train routes throughout the year. Let's hope that the 5000-series cars pass their test without encountering any other bumps along the (rail)road.