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Muni unveils first of new light-rail vehicles; city and state partners cite funding and reliability gains
Summary
San Francisco transit leaders and elected officials marked delivery of the first new light-rail vehicle in a large procurement, saying the cars will expand capacity and reliability; speakers credited federal, state (cap-and-trade) and local funding and praised a partnership with Siemens.
San Francisco officials gathered at a public event included in the transcript to mark the arrival of the first new light-rail vehicle (LRV) in a multi-hundred-car procurement intended to expand and replace parts of Muni's fleet.
Ed Reiskin, director of transportation (SFMTA), said the car is the first of 24 in the initial batch that will be in service before the end of next year and that additional batches will follow. "This car is the first of 24 of the first batch that will be going into service," he said, adding that the procurement is intended to provide greater capacity, quieter, smoother rides and improved ADA access.
Mayor Ed Lee, Assemblymember Phil Ting and other state and federal partners highlighted the role of cap-and-trade grants and competitive state funding in the procurement. Assemblymember Ting said a competitive grant of $45,000,000 from a transit program helped the project and praised the region's legislative support for transportation funding. Federal Transit Administration regional staff also spoke in support of the project.
Muni officials said the cars were designed with input from drivers and maintenance staff, built in California by Siemens and include diagnostics to reduce downtime and support predictive maintenance. John Haley (transit director) and his implementation team were credited for accelerating procurement and rollout.
What happens next: Muni will continue testing and deploy additional cars over the coming months; related funding and infrastructure work will proceed in coordination with regional and federal partners.
