Dcist | FEB 23, 2023
Metro Exploring “Open Gangway” For Its 8000-Series Trains
Jordan Pascale
Metro is exploring a drastic change to its upcoming new 8000-series trains: an open gangway. Open gangway trains have no doors between cars, allowing riders to freely move through parts of or the entire length of the train. It can improve train capacity, and provide more space for people who use wheelchairs and people with bikes, strollers, or luggage. Loading times can also decrease as people have more places to spread out. One odd sensation of riding on an open gangway train is that you can see the train bend as it rides around a curve.
The concept has been used for years in London, Paris, Toronto, China, and other places internationally, but the idea has been slow to roll out in the U.S. New York’s MTA will start to use open gangway trains this year and Atlanta’s MARTA is also set to get open gangway trains in the near future.
During a board meeting Thursday, Metro General Manager Randy Clarke said the transit agency was exploring the technical feasibility of the idea and will be getting feedback from the public, Metro’s accessibility committee, and its rider advisory committee.
“One of the things the senior team and I’ve been talking a lot about is how do we get our agency to be as close as we can to international and domestic best of the best standards and operate that way,” Clarke said. “And sometimes if someone is doing something better, it’s okay to cut and paste and learn from them and move forward.”
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