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Letter: Light Rail, a Solution for New Canaan Line Rail Service
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To the Editor:
Over many years of commuting by rail from New Canaan, I have often wondered why the Metro-North Railroad spends so much money on the off-peak and weekend shuttle to New Canaan. Every time, they send a three-pair, six-car, heavy rail train with four of the cars closed off. The two open cars can accommodate up to 200 people, yet only on rare occasions will you ever see as many as 50 passengers on an off-peak or weekend train. These heavy rail (now M8) cars are the most expensive rolling stock to buy and run, and are not suited for this job. Across the country you now find light rail vehicles (LRVs) increasingly used for this type of operation, typically as two connected cars (pairs).