Fancy New Subway Cars Join the New York Subway System

New York has been planning on adding these new subway cars for years, finally achieving their goal in March 2023. More than a thousand of the new R211 trains will be running in New York within two years if all goes according to plan.

1 minute read

March 15, 2023, 6:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


The inaugural ride of the new R211 subway cars in the New York Subway.

The inaugural ride of the R211. | Marc A. Hermann / MTA / Wikimedia Commons

New “state-of-the-art” subway cars for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority debuted recently on the A Train in New York City.

“The new R211 model includes security cameras, flip-up seating for added space for riders with disabilities, and door openings that are 8 inches wider for quicker boarding,” according to an article about the new cars by Arya Sundaram for Gothamist.

The new A Trains are just the first wave of what will eventually be 535 new R211 subway cars. ”That includes 15 for the Staten Island Railway and 20 cars with ‘open gangways,’ which allow for free movement between cars,” according to Sundaram. (Open gangways also increase the capacity of subway lines.) Eventually, the MTA plans to but another 640 R211s, bringing the total to 1,175 new subway cars within the next two years.

“The new cars also work with the agency’s new signaling system that will allow trains to run more frequently and closer together,” adds Sundaram.

New York has been preparing for this new batch of subway cars for the better part of a decade. Planetizen first picked up the news about plans to buy a new fleet of subway cars in January 2016, revisiting the updates on the schedule in 2017 and 2018.

Saturday, March 11, 2023 in Gothamist

Young Professional

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban and Environmental Planner

Get top-rated, practical training for planners

"Planetizen federal action tracker" logo superimposed over black and white image of US Capitol dome.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

45 minutes ago - Zachary Whalen

Overlapping highways

The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin

People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.

September 8, 2026 - Benjamin Schneider

The Hoover Dam blocking the Colorado River. The river's water level is noticeably low. The cliffs surrounding the blue water are brown and jagged.

US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico

A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.

September 11, 2026 - The Arizona Republic

NYC Mayor Zohran Mandami speaks behind a blue podium.

Mamdani overhauls NYC's Vision Zero plan with 100 new policy goals

The overhaul aims to reduce traffic deaths and make streets safer for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers through lower speed limits, new safety infrastructure and more.

30 minutes ago - ABC 7 Eyewitness News

A New Jersey train approaches people waiting at the station.

Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds

A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.

September 15 - Mass Transit

A tall, gray power plant billows smoke into a blue sky.

EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants

Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.

September 15 - New York Times

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.