Our seagoing subway train gets ready for its ocean voyage
The MBTA reports the Chinese company that will build new Orange and Red Line cars has packed up a two-thirds mock up of an Orange Line car for shipment to Boston, where the T will give it the once over.
The T says the voyage should take about a month.
CRRC will assemble the cars at a plant it's building in Springfield, out of components shipped from China. The current schedule shows the first track-ready car to be shipped in December of 2018, followed by several months of testing on actual Orange Line tracks here. Assuming it works, we'll get four new cars a month until the entire Orange Line fleet is replaced sometime in 2022. The Red Line cars should start arriving about a year after the Orange Line shipments start.
A look under the plastic wrap at the mockup.
Mock up Orange Line car getting loaded onto a cargo ship bound for Boston:
Ad:
Comments
"The T says the voyage should take about a month"
They're already reporting experiencing moderate delays due to a signal problem at the Panama Canal and police activity at Stony Brook
Wouldn't management direct the ship
around Cape Horn instead, to avoid the toll on the Panama Canal?
YangMing Marine Transport
YangMing Marine Transport Corp.
U.S. East Coast - Asia
AW4 QINGDAO-NINGBO-SHANGHAI-PUSAN-PANAMA CANAL-NEW YORK-BOSTON-NORFOLK-PANAMA CANAL-QINGDAO
Chinese New Year, coming up!
Don't worry, we can safely assume that due to unexpected delays at the port, this won't move until after the New Year's closure.
That's fast!
The company I work for imports goods from China. We wait 6 weeks for each container load!
What is the rhyme headline going to be if it gets delayed
We must be prepared Adam!
Put on an extra coat...
...Orange Line train delayed by disabled boat...
Did they pay 10 cents for
Did they pay 10 cents for that bag? How did they manage to get plastic instead of paper?
Subway cars built in China
So does that mean that if we miss one, there'll be another one along in a hour. Oh wait, that's probably better than current Red Line service is.
What is this ?!
A subway car for ants?!
Bad optics in the current political environment = trouble
pay no attention to that Springfield plant - the optics of this photo feed right into the current political narrative and will some how, some way, help to screw up on time delivery of this much needed infrastructure.
I'm six-two tall
How am I supposed to ride in something that's 2/3 as big? Even average-size people will have to crouch!
Ah, an ocean voyage, a real journey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUuID2ijD_A
A lot of people are thinking
But I'll be the one to ask:
How about a public inspection? I'd be there with junior in a heartbeat.
So this one will only break
So this one will only break down two-thirds of the time?
The Last Screw
Need a Zone-10 Charlie Card for this Car Float.
Basically they design and build it in China, then turn the last screw in Springfield, which increases the value 60% so that it is Made in USA. I am exaggerating but only a little.