OYSTER BAY, N.Y. (WCBS 880) — The Long Island Rail Road is looking into possibly rolling out the nation's first battery-operated commuter trains that could phase out its diesel locomotives.
LIRR President Phillip Eng announced Monday that the LIRR is considering retrofitting M7 trains that would enable them to run on battery power on diesel branches.
"The first eight months we'll be looking at how many batteries are needed to support our operational needs today. Will they fit in the train? The idea at this point is to find out how many, how big and where they will fit underneath the train car," Eng said. "How long a charge will last and how many miles can be traveled will helps us determine where charging locations may be needed."
Following the initial study, a two car-long electric train will be retrofitted to operate on battery power without passengers on the Oyster Bay Branch, which was selected due to its short, 13-mile trip.
According to a release from the railroad, if successful, the LIRR would ultimately be able to carry passengers directly between Oyster Bay and New York City without the need for a transfer.
The technology could also expanded to the rest of the railroad's diesel branches.
The railroad's expansive unelectrified regions extend 160 miles from East Williston to Oyster Bay, Huntington to Port Jefferson, Babylon to Montauk and Ronkonkoma to Greenport.
Eng said this is a much greener way to go to get rid of noisy, carbon-emitting diesel trains and much more cost effective because it would cost $17 billion to electrify the entire system.
"People have been talking about extending electrification to various segments of the railroad for generations," Eng said. "Embracing new technology might allow us to essentially electrify the entire railroad without the need for billions of dollars in massive capital investments"
The LIRR will also study the differences between diesel, electric and battery-operated trains when it comes to power and speed.
"If the study shows that it's a few miles per hour difference those are the kinds of things that we will weigh in the whole picture to see what decisions we make moving forward. There are going to be some tradeoffs but we're open-minded about that and that's the whole idea behind this first phase," Eng said.
The LIRR will share the test information with Metro-North Railroad.
"This is another example of the LIRR embracing modern technology to benefit our commuters," Gerry Bringmann, Chair of the LIRR Commuters Council, said. "This is a potential game changer for our riders in diesel territory, giving them more opportunities for a one seat ride into NYC."
This is believed to be the first test of battery-powered commuter rail cars in North America.
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