![\"nyc](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/52667572238_1311072d6f_k.jpg\" "\\"How")
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The open gangway allows riders to seamlessly move between train cars.<\/p>\n
Marc A. Hermann \/ MTA<\/p>\n
MTA<\/a> Chair and CEO Janno Lieber said this week that a number of factors will determine to what extent the agency embraces open gangway<\/a> trains in its latest order of modern subway cars.<\/p>\n During a press conference following the MTA board\u2019s March 26 meeting, Lieber said the transit agency is still in the midst of evaluating both the operational and maintenance challenges that come with open gangway trains. The trains feature cars joined via accordion-style apparatus, allowing passengers to walk the length of an entire train without going outside. The open gangways replace the interior doors that have been standard on subway trains for a century.<\/p>\n The MTA boss said agency leadership will take both into account when deciding what percentage of their new train order \u2014 the largest in the agency\u2019s history \u2014 the trains will account for.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThat work is still underway, and that\u2019s going to be, as we get further into that, that\u2019s going to be the basis for determining how many open gangway versus closed-end cars that we get done,\u201d Lieber said.<\/p>\n While announcing the order of 2,390 new rail cars<\/a> last week, MTA officials said that up to 60% of the purchase could be open gangway cars. The state-of-the-art subway cars, known as R262s and R262As, will replace aging trains that have run on the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 lines since the 1980s.<\/p>\n Lieber said the different maintenance needs of open gangway cars include where and how to elevate them in order to access their undercarriages, the parts required, and how long those parts will last.<\/p>\n He added that the agency is also still looking at whether passengers take advantage of the open layout to spread themselves out and what benefits the added capacity brings.\n<\/p>\n \u201cThe pros\u2026are looking at all that, and they\u2019re going to continue to look at that right up to the time we need to make those decisions,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n The open gangway design is standard in subway systems around the world, except in the United States. Proponents of introducing more open gangway cars in the New York City subways say they would greatly increase capacity, as ridership numbers continue to climb post-pandemic, and are better at guarding against subway surfing, because they do not allow riders to easily climb on top of trains.<\/p>\n The MTA has been testing open gangway versions of its newest trains to date \u2014 dubbed R211s \u2014 since February 2024, when it first introduced them on the C line<\/a>. Last year, it also rolled out open gangway R211s on the G line<\/a>. It is currently running 20 open gangway trains accross the system.<\/p>\n![\"MTA](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/55156724661_eb89d38baa_o.jpg\" "\\"How")
MTA Chair & CEO Janno Lieber announced on March 19 the release of an RFP for the R262 subway car class at the Railcar Acceptance and Testing Facility on Thursday, Mar 19, 2026.Marc A. Hermann \/ MTA<\/p>\n