Railroad Forums 

  • M9 and M9A Procurement & Acceptance

  • Discussion of the past and present operations of the Long Island Rail Road.
Discussion of the past and present operations of the Long Island Rail Road.

Moderator: Liquidcamphor

 #1520037  by nyandw
 
Steve: This is the correct car numbers for Train #1621 for September 11, 2018 This was an 8 car M9 train which was their first revenue run -
West9015-90169007-90089005-90069001-9002EastTrain#1621 stops: Huntington, Cold Spring Harbor, Syosset, Hicksville, Jamaica and Hunterspoint Avenue.[/quote]

Thank you. I added the numbers. :-)
 #1520038  by MattAmity90
 
newkirk wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 5:42 pm Okay, the M-9's are in service. Now what's next ?
My guess is to keep a vast majority of the remaining M3 cars in service until an adequate amount of M9 cars arrive on the railroad so that they can be phased out. The original order is 92 cars, and some are still being manufactured in Omaha. Probably once we get past 174 cars (amount of M3's made) then the M3's will be scrapped. Although they are thinking of keeping the M3's until 2021-2022. It usually takes 5 years to deliver the full order when 92 becomes 184 then 368, and possibly 736. M1's were rolled out from 1968-1974, and the M7's were rolled out from 2002-2007.
 #1520039  by nyandw
 
MattAmity90 wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 1:54 pm My opinion on the look of the M9 cars both pros and cons.

PROS:
1.) I approve the advancements in accommodations such as the electronic screens for advertisements.
2.) LED destination present on the front of the cars above the conductor and engineer cabs.
3.) The fact that when the train is arriving at a station that is less than 12 cars long, it tells you what car you're in out of the consist.
4.) On the sides where it shows the destination of the train, it scrolls.
5.) Safety system upgrades in case of emergencies.

CONS:
1.) The blue vertical stripes are an eyesore, and should not be a part of the paint scheme.
2.) Front of the cars should have fluorescent yellow bumpers (bumblebee) like the M7 cars, where the head and taillights are located.
3.) The headlight and taillight configuration being inverted. Headlights need to be the inner lights, with the taillights as the outer lights.
4.) Propulsion and air brake sound.
5.) Fact that the release of the cars was delayed by a few years, and that car #9002 wasn't the head car for the first revenue run.
MattAmity90 and everyone: Take a look at http://lists.thelirrtoday.com/ The M9 analysis is extensive and worth a read. I couldn't copy/paste it here as too many photos/diagrams/text. Diagram below of seating for example:

Image
 #1520047  by MACTRAXX
 
MA90 - This is my reply about your 10 comments - PRO first:
1-Electronic screens for advertisements are good-provided that they work and do not become a target for
vandals (all those interior security cameras may well be a deterrent to any mischievous activity...)
2-Two front LED signs is really not necessary on the front end - one slightly larger LED destination sign
would have been sufficient. There is just one full-width cab at the front end similar to the M7 cars.
3-Marking consist location is a good idea - provided that it is accurate and is maintainable.
4-Scrolling destination signs again are good - provided that they work correctly (remember the C3 LED
sign problems and why they are rarely used?) and are maintained.
5-Safety systems are a necessity - any reasonable upgrade helps...

CONS:
1-The blue side stripes are an interesting COLOR SCHEME change and will take getting used to.
These stripes are a form of color sheeting - M9 cars are stainless steel. NO paint here!!!
2-The new front end colors are another interesting M9 change - I have NEVER liked the yellow used on LIRR
MU front ends from day one in 1983 - My preference would have been a red or orange stripe...
3-There had to have been a reason for the headlight/marker light placement change - maybe some of the
literature on the M9 cars mentions why...
4-The propulsion and air brakes sounds: I would rather comment after I ride the M9 cars...
5-The delays were in the testing/acceptance phase. It would have been nice to have had 9001-9002 as the
lead west cars - they ended up on the east end of the consist and did lead the two evening eastbound runs
to Hempstead and Babylon later that day (9/11).

In closing I would rather refrain on more M9 commentary until I get a chance to ride them in service...
MACTRAXX
Last edited by MACTRAXX on Fri Sep 13, 2019 8:12 pm, edited 2 times in total.
 #1520048  by Head-end View
 
Be sure to check out the video in Dutch's above post. It's absolutely priceless. Beats the heck out of me how any train crew member could have had an issue with anyone filming the first M-9 trains. That is unless something unusual preceded that exchange that we're not yet aware of.
 #1520050  by nyandw
 
MACTRAXX wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 7:49 pm MA90 - This is my reply about your 10 comments - PRO first:
1-Electronic screens for advertisements are good-provided that they work and do not become a target for
vandals (all those interior security cameras may well be a deterrent to any mischievous activity...)
2-Two front LED signs is really not necessary on the front end - one slightly larger LED destination sign
would have been sufficient. There is just one full-width cab at the front end similar to the M7 cars.
3-Marking consist location is a good idea - provided that it is accurate and is maintainable.
4-Scrolling destination signs again are good - provided that they work correctly (remember the C3 LED
sign problems and why they are rarely used?) and are maintained.
5-Safety systems are a necessity - any reasonable upgrade helps...

CONS:
1-The blue side stripes are an interesting COLOR SCHEME change and will take getting used to.
These stripes are a form of color sheeting - M9 cars are stainless steel. NO paint here!!!
2-The new front end colors are another interesting M9 change - I have NEVER liked the yellow used on LIRR
MU front ends from day one in 1983 - My preference would have been a red or orange stripe...
3-There had to have been a reason for the headlight/marker light placement change - maybe some of the
literature on the M9 cars mentions why...
4-The propulsion and air brakes sounds: I would rather comment after I ride the M9 cars...
5-The delays were in the testing/acceptance phase. It would have been nice to have had 9001-9002 as the
lead west cars - they ended up on the east end of the consist and did lead the two evening eastbound runs
to Hempstead and Babylon later that day (9/11).

In closing I would rather refrain on more M9 commentary until I get a chance to ride them in service...
MACTRAXX
Interesting post(s). It would seem that the PROS are highly dependent on serviceability/maintenance/functionality. CONS are a bit more subjective and the "wait and see/ride them" are valid. Thanks to you both.
 #1520067  by newkirk
 
The weekday schedule was posted by the MTA press release. But does anyone know the weekend schedule of the M-9's ?
 #1520070  by gregorygrice
 
newkirk wrote: Sat Sep 14, 2019 6:50 am The weekday schedule was posted by the MTA press release. But does anyone know the weekend schedule of the M-9's ?
Nor using them on the weekends for now. This allows the trainset to be brought back to Hillside for checks, etc.
 #1520106  by belpaire
 
trainspot wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 11:07 pm
newkirk wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 5:42 pm Okay, the M-9's are in service. Now what's next ?
My guess would be M-11's! And nobody mentioned, did the first train arrive on time?
Yes, they arrived at Hunterspoint on time. They had to make it up along the way, since they got into CSH 4 minutes late.
 #1520162  by MattAmity90
 
Fan Railer wrote: Sun Sep 15, 2019 9:44 am
MattAmity90 wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 1:54 pm My opinion on the look of the M9 cars both pros and cons.

4.) Propulsion and air brake sound.
5.) ...and that car #9002 wasn't the head car for the first revenue run.
why are these cons?
The M1's and M3's had the same droning noise, same blueprint, and were compatible. As for those horns, it didn't matter. Main reason why the propulsion and brakes sound different is because of the manufacturer. M7 cars were built by Bombardier with the M9 cars built by Kawasaki.

Car #9002 being the lead car on the first revenue WB train just seemed right because even though the second car was #9001, lowest number seems to fit. Just a little Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. By the way Fain Railer, did you receive word back from the MTA about the conductor in car #9002 that flipped you off twice, and what did they say?

Sorry if the CONS are opinionated, but I just realized it. There are more PROS than CONS, and we'll see what they say at the end of the weekend when they check them since they are not being run on the weekends. Actually one CON is that the headlights are too bright, even the older models didn't blind you.
 #1520170  by Head-end View
 
Did anyone here who rode the new train notice how the doors sound when opening and closing? I've always hated that sound on the M-7's. That whining jackscrew noise. :(
 #1520175  by Fan Railer
 
MattAmity90 wrote: Sun Sep 15, 2019 4:44 pm
Fan Railer wrote: Sun Sep 15, 2019 9:44 am
MattAmity90 wrote: Fri Sep 13, 2019 1:54 pm My opinion on the look of the M9 cars both pros and cons.

4.) Propulsion and air brake sound.
5.) ...and that car #9002 wasn't the head car for the first revenue run.
why are these cons?
The M1's and M3's had the same droning noise, same blueprint, and were compatible. As for those horns, it didn't matter. Main reason why the propulsion and brakes sound different is because of the manufacturer. M7 cars were built by Bombardier with the M9 cars built by Kawasaki.

Car #9002 being the lead car on the first revenue WB train just seemed right because even though the second car was #9001, lowest number seems to fit. Just a little Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. By the way Fain Railer, did you receive word back from the MTA about the conductor in car #9002 that flipped you off twice, and what did they say?

Sorry if the CONS are opinionated, but I just realized it. There are more PROS than CONS, and we'll see what they say at the end of the weekend when they check them since they are not being run on the weekends. Actually one CON is that the headlights are too bright, even the older models didn't blind you.
The propulsion on both the M7 and M9 are from Mitsubishi Electric (MELCO). No, the MTA hasn't gotten back to me about the incident, and I don't really care if they do or don't.
  • 1
  • 41
  • 42
  • 43
  • 44
  • 45
  • 58