FRA OKs $1 billion loan for PTC projects at Metro-North, LIRR

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has approved a $967.1 million loan for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to implement positive train control (PTC) on Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and Metro-North Railroad, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced late last week.

The largest loan made through the FRA's Railroad Rehabilitation and Improvement Financing program, it is still subject to approval by MTA's board on April 29, according to a press release issued by Cuomo's office.

"This loan is a dramatic investment in the MTA — one that will make trains safer for all riders on Metro-North and the LIRR," Cuomo said in a statement. "With this infusion of funding, crews will be getting to work on individual cars and along hundreds of miles of track to install state of the art technology that can save lives."

MTA would repay the loan over a 22.5-year period, with a fixed interest rate of 2.38 percent, Cuomo administration officials said.

Metro-North and LIRR are in the process of implementing the technology, which includes the installation of on-board components for 1,455 rail cars, as well as transponders alongside 588 route miles of track.

In November 2013, MTA awarded a contract to Bombardier Transportation and Siemens to design, furnish equipment for and ensure the PTC system functions as intended.