MTA officials on Wednesday announced modern subway cars will start rolling on the D line, replacing breakdown-prone trains that date back to the 1980s.
The new cars — called R211s — have more standing room, wider doors and more modern digital displays than their 20th-century predecessors. They're also equipped with security cameras and electronic signal technology that can eventually help speed up service.
The MTA rolled out the R211s on the B line last year. That expansion allowed the modern cars to service the Bronx for the first time — but only on weekdays, because the B doesn’t run on weekends. By adding them to the D line, New Yorkers can ride the new cars from Norwood to Coney Island and back every day of the week.
“Riders tell us in surveys that they love the designs and the extra space of these 211s,” said MTA Chair Janno Lieber. “We love the fact that they’re so much less prone to breakdowns, almost 300,000 miles that they are running between breakdowns, which is double the rest of our fleet.”
Lieber cast the arrival of the new cars as the latest in a spate of triumphs for the city, including the Knicks' recent championship win.
“Has there ever been a better time to be a New Yorker?” he quipped.
The cars are replacing the R68s, which Lieber noted debuted on the subways in 1986 “when the Mets had that amazing comeback in the World Series where we rocked the Red Sox’s world.”
Since 2018, the MTA has ordered 1,988 modern train cars — including the R211s — for the subway’s lettered lines from the manufacturer Kawasaki at a cost of $6.75 billion. The company faced repeated delays in delivering the new train sets.
In addition to the D line, the R211s are running on the A, B, C and G lines, the Rockaway Shuttle, and the Staten Island Railway. The MTA also plans to deploy modern cars on the N, R and W lines.
The MTA earlier this year announced it would buy at least 1,140 new subway cars to replace old trains on the system’s numbered lines.
