NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri introduced a comprehensive plan to expedite full replacement of the over 13,000 “cloudy” windows on the multilevel rail car fleet from 6-8 years, down to 3 years, he announced on Wednesday, March 5 at Penn Station in Newark, New Jersey.
Under the plan, one-third of the windows will be replaced each year, and work is already under way.
“Improving the customer experience continues to be a priority for NJ TRANSIT,” said NJDOT Commissioner & NJ TRANSIT Board Chair Fran O’Connor. “Accelerating the replacement of these windows is part of our commitment to putting our customers first.”
The replacement of the windows has already begun. Under the timeline announced today, all of the replacement materials have been ordered to assure that NJ TRANSIT will have all the necessary supplies on-hand to complete installation on the entire fleet of Multilevel II rail cars in revenue service by December 31, 2025.
Replacement of all windows on the entire fleet of nearly 400 Multilevel I and Multilevel II rail cars in revenue service will be complete by April 2028. In all, more than 13,000 windows will be replaced.
“When I was appointed to this position, I promised that I would look at NJT’s operations in a holistic manner, with a specific focus on service reliability, infrastructure improvements, and customer experience,” said NJ TRANSIT President & CEO Kris Kolluri. “Last week, Governor Murphy announced a plan to modernize the entire rolling stock, as of last week Portal Bridge – a critical part of our infrastructure is almost 80% constructed, and today we are announcing a plan to replace windows on our multilevels – an important customer experience improvement.”
Over time, exposure to elements (acid rain, heat, UV rays) has damaged the polycarbonate window coating, causing the cloudy appearance. Other railroads have experienced similar issues with the windows on their rail cars. Through a partnership with Rutgers Center for Advanced Infrastructure and Transportation (CAIT), NJ TRANSIT thoroughly evaluated the current condition of the multilevel rail car windows to determine if the damage could be reversed. It was determined that refurbishing the windows wasn’t a viable option, so the decision was made to replace them.
“NJ TRANSIT understands how the cloudy train windows on our multilevel rail cars impacts our customers’ travel experience,” Kolluri added. “Accelerating the timeline for these window replacements reflects NJ TRANSIT’s commitment to continually find ways to improve the customer experience along every aspect of the journey.”
About NJ Transit
NJ TRANSIT is the nation’s largest statewide public transportation system providing more than 925,000 weekday trips on 263 bus routes, three light rail lines, 12 commuter rail lines and through Access Link paratransit service. It is the third largest transit system in the country with 166 rail stations, 62 light rail stations and more than 19,000 bus stops linking major points in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia.