LA Metro’s new subway trains will include New York-style bench seating
LA Metro’s new subway cars will allow riders to walk between cars and will feature bench seating similar to trains in New York, according to the agency.
The new fleet of 64 trains, which will be deployed over the next six to eight months on the B (Red) and D (Purple) Lines, have 41 seats in each car and can fit nearly 250 people in each car, Metro said.
The new trains have seating along the sides of the cars, allowing standing passengers room to move about the car as well as more space to fit an increased number of riders. The trains also have separate seating for disabled riders.
The stainless steel trains, painted in a fresh coat of yellow, will run four to six cars long.
Transit watchers said the Olympics in 2028 could have factored into Metro changing the seating of the trains to allow for more standing riders.
“We’re all of a sudden going to get crush loads of people on Metro in five years. You might as well design your fleet to take more people,” said Bart Reed, the executive director of The Transit Coalition.
The trains were ordered up by Metro in 2016 and were supposed to be delivered by September 2021, but were delayed.
They were manufactured by China Railway Rolling Stock Corp. The company, which is the largest maker of passenger trains in the world, came under scrutiny when the Pentagon revealed that it was backed by the Chinese military.
Los Angeles is not the only major American city to contract with CRRC. Boston also procured trains from the company for its metro system.
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