Budd Universal Transit Vehicle
| Industry | Railcar manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Fate | Departure from railcar industry after 1986 |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia , United States |
| Products | Budd Universal Transit Vehicle |
The Budd Universal Transit Vehicle is an electric multiple unit heavy rail car utilized on both the Baltimore Metro SubwayLink and Miami-Dade Metrorail. Produced by the Budd Company under the name Transit America between 1983 and 1986, these railcars represent the final models manufactured by Budd before its departure from the railcar industry.
Description
Constructed at Budd's Red Lion facility located in Northeast Philadelphia, the vehicles serving Baltimore and Miami share an identical appearance. This was a result of a combined procurement effort aimed at cost reduction during the concurrent development of both transit systems.
Each car is powered via an electric third rail and measures in length and in width, capable of reaching a maximum speed of . The passenger capacity per car totals 166 individuals, with seating available for 76 and standing room for 90. These railcars operate in semi-permanent married pairs, forming 4-car trainsets on Miami’s Metrorail, while Baltimore’s SubwayLink runs trains consisting of 2, 4, or 6 cars.
From 2002 through 2005, Baltimore’s fleet underwent extensive refurbishment that included reupholstering seats, replacing flooring, and upgrading both exterior destination displays and internal passenger information systems. Although Miami had plans to refurbish its fleet similarly, insufficient maintenance ultimately led to the decision to replace these vehicles with new ones.
Replacement
Following ongoing maintenance challenges with the Metrorail cars, Miami-Dade authorized a $313 million contract in November 2012 to acquire 136 new Metrorail vehicles from Hitachi Rail Italy (previously known as AnsaldoBreda). The initial new trainset began operations in December 2017.
In July 2017, the Maryland Transit Administration announced a $400.5 million order for 78 new railcars from Hitachi Rail Italy to fully replace its SubwayLink fleet. These replacement vehicles will share design similarities with those procured for Miami’s Metrorail system.
See also
- Breda A650 - A comparable fleet used by the Los Angeles Metro Rail on its B and D routes.