Shoreliners are a class of

locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pull train, push–pull operation has become common, and in the pursuit for ...

-hauled rail car used by the

Metro-North Railroad The Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company , also branded as MTA Metro-North Railroad and commonly called simply Metro-North, is a suburban commuter rail service operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), a New York State publ ...

. They are similar to the

Comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...

coaches used by

New Jersey Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. It ...

. Ownership of the fleet is split between the

Metropolitan Transportation Authority The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is a New York state public benefit corporations, public benefit corporation in New York (state), New York State responsible for public transportation in the New York metropolitan area, New York Ci ...

(MTA) and the

Connecticut Department of Transportation The Connecticut Department of Transportation (officially referred to as CTDOT, occasionally ConnDOT, and CDOT in rare instances) is responsible for the development and operation of highways, Rail transport, railroads, mass transit systems, por ...

, as part of the latter's operating agreement with the MTA. MTA coaches have blue window bands, while CTDOT coaches have red ones. Many of the Shoreliner cars are named in honor of people and places significant to their service area, such as The Connecticut Yankee and Washington Irving. The Shoreliners are primarily used on non-electric territory such as the upper Hudson Line north of Croton-Harmon, on the upper

Harlem Line The Harlem Line is an commuter rail line owned and operated by the Metro-North Railroad in the U.S. state of New York. It runs north from New York City to Wassaic, in eastern Dutchess County. The lower from Grand Central Terminal to Southea ...

north of Southeast station, and the

New Haven Line The New Haven Line is a commuter rail line operated by the Metro-North Railroad in the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Connecticut. Running from New Haven, Connecticut, to New York City, the New Haven Line joins the Harlem Line ...

's Danbury and

Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Waterbury had a population of 114,403 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. The city is southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury i ...

branches. They are typically operated in a push-pull configuration. Several sets were used for Shore Line East service in the early 1990s until used equipment was acquired.

Models

The Shoreliners I and II were built in 1983 and 1987. They were heavily based on the New Jersey Transit Comet II. These cars have doors at each end vestibule, and no center door. The Shoreliner I order includes 39 cars, while the Shoreliner II order includes 36 cars. Cars numbered in the 6200s are owned by Connecticut DOT, which include 14 cab cars and 26 coaches, while all other cars are owned by the MTA. Four of the Shoreliner I cars were originally equipped with an underfloor

head-end power In rail transport, head-end power (HEP), also known as electric train supply (ETS), is the electrical power distribution system on a passenger train. The power source, usually a locomotive (or a generator car) at the front or 'head' of a train, ...

generator, for use behind CTDOT's five rebuilt freight locomotives, which lacked HEP generators. The generators were removed when the freight locomotives were replaced by CTDOT's rebuilt GP40-2H units. Metro-North Shoreliner IV 6222

Shoreliner IIIs date from 1991; 49 cars were built. This series is based on New Jersey Transit's Comet III. They have an additional center door and a different restroom location from the older Shoreliner series. The Shoreliner IV is much like the Shoreliner III, but the engineer's side door has been removed as a safety measure. Based on the NJ Transit Comet IV, these were built in two distinct groups between 1996 and 1998. The first order, from 1996–97, consisted of 50 cars. The second set, built for Connecticut DOT in 1998, consisted of 10 cars.

Future

In August 2023, CTDOT approved a contract with

Alstom Alstom SA () is a French multinational rolling stock manufacturer which operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in the fields of passenger transportation, signaling, and locomotives, producing high-speed, suburban, regional ...

for 60 single-level passenger cars. The cars will replace the existing Shoreliner coach fleet on the Waterbury Branch and the Danbury Branch, as well as Mafersa coaches and leased MBTA MBB coaches on the

Hartford Line The Hartford Line is a commuter rail service between New Haven, Connecticut, and Springfield, Massachusetts, using the Amtrak-owned New Haven–Springfield Line. The project is a joint venture between the states of Connecticut and Massachuset ...

. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2026. Metro-North intends to begin replacing the Shoreliners used on other east-of-Hudson services by 2029.

References

External links

{{LIRR and MNCR rolling stock Rail passenger cars of the United States Metro-North Railroad Bombardier Transportation rail vehicles

Models

Future

See also

References

External links