Streetsblog Mass gets the scoop that the MBTA and Keolis are going to try to get battery-operated trains running on the Fairmount Line within 3 1/2 years in a pilot aimed at increasing the frequency of trains, shorten trip times and replace some antiquated old diesel-powered trains.
Last week, the T solicited possible bids from other railroad operators that might want to try to match Keolis's proposal. Would-be Fairmount Line battery-powered train operators were given until April 12 to submit proposals.
Keolis says it would run battery-powered "electric multiple units," in which every car would have its own batteries and motors, like subway cars, but unlike the T's current fleet of commuter-rail trains, in which a single diesel not only pulls or pushes coaches, but provides power for their lighting and ventilation.
Keolis says that with the new cars - and charging stations at either end of the line - it could increase increase the frequency of trains to one one every 20 minutes on weekdays, offer quicker trips to and from downtown and help begin "decarbonizing" commuter rail.
The Fairmount Line, which has subway-like fares - except for people going to the end of the line in Readville - currently has trains running once every 45 minutes during the week and 90 minutes on weekends. Although 20 minutes would still be painfully infrequent compared to subway service in many world-class cities, it would get the line closer to what now passes for rapid transit on the T's subway lines.
According to the T's fact sheet for operators who want to try to drop everything and prepare and submit a proposal by April 12, Keolis has assured the T it can have the brand-new cars and related equipment ready to roll by the end of 2027, a speed that would prove amazing to riders of the Red and Orange Lines, who have had to endure rides on increasingly superannuated cars as the manufacturer selected by the T missed one delivery deadline after another.
Transit advocates have long advocated electrification of the only commuter line that runs exclusively in Boston as a way of providing subway-like service, but the problem has been that the MBTA absolutely hates the idea of overhead power lines anywhere but on the Green Line and part of the Blue Line.