By Zhang Lipeng in Beijing | CRRC | Updated: 2017-12-20
The first CRRC-built prototype Orange Line subway car arrived at the MBTA on 20th December.
This car was built in China, but when regular production of the Orange Line and Red Line subway cars begins, probably in April, the cars will be assembled in Springfield.
Testing of the prototype will begin at the MBTA's Wellington Yard in Medford. The cars arrived by ship from China to New Jersey.
Meanwhile, CRRC is putting the finishing touches on its mammoth $95 million factory at the old Westinghouse site on Page Boulevard in East Springfield. At 300 by 700 feet, the new CRRC plant is big enough for three and a half football fields and is the largest industrial development in Springfield in generations.
The new trains will run more frequently with the new technology. The Orange Line will get a 40 percent boost in service, meaning trains will come every four or four and a half minutes. Red Line service will get a 50 percent boost, meaning trains will come and go every three minutes.
