RRIF loan to help Metro-North, LIRR install PTC

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor
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Metropolitan Transportation Authority / Patrick Cashin

The Federal Railroad Administration has approved a Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing loan of $967.1 million to the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which will finance the installment of positive train control on the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and Metro-North Railroad (Metro North).

 

“This loan is a dramatic investment in the MTA – one that will make trains safer for all riders on Metro-North and the LIRR,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said. “With this infusion of funding, crews will be getting to work on individual cars and along hundreds of miles of track to install state-of -the-art technology that can save lives. This loan could not have been possible without the hard work and support of United States Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Acting Administrator Sarah Feinberg and I thank them on behalf of all MTA commuter rail customers for helping us make this important advancement possible.”

MTA Chairman and CEO Thomas F. Prendergast said, “We are delighted to have been able to work with the Federal Railroad Administration to make this historic, and extremely important award possible. The most important thing we do each day is strive to ensure the safety of our passengers, our employees, and the public at large. This award will help us enhance that effort in a very significant way.”

Metro-North the LIRR are in the process of implementing the technology, which includes the installation of on-board components for 1,455 rail cars and transponders alongside 588 route miles of track. In November 2013, the MTA awarded a contract to a joint venture of Bombardier Transportation and Siemens Rail Automation to act as a systems integrator that will provide the design, furnish equipment and ensure that the system functions as intended. LIRR and Metro-North forces and some third party contracts will support installations of wayside, office, communications and on-board equipment. Installation of positive train control on Metro-North territory in the State of Connecticut will be funded by the Connecticut Department of Transportation.

The loan is subject to MTA Board approval on April 29 and final closing in May. MTA will issue its Transportation Revenue Bond directly to the FRA and will repay the obligation over twenty two and a half years at a fixed interest rate of 2.38 percent.

 

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