M3/M3A Series
In the early 1980s, the MTA began to expand electrification areas of both the LIRR and the then-newly rechristened Metro-North. With the M1 series design proven, the MTA put in an order for similar cars in 1982 with the first trains entering service in spring of 1984. Essentially compatible with the M1 series, the M3s had updated elements (largely mechanical, some cosmetic) and a far more subdued interior scheme. Traction motor cooling was added to the M3 at the cost of considerable weight. This created different acceleration and braking rates from the M1. While LIRR mixed M1s and M3s in the same consist, Metro-North chose not to. 174 M3s (9771-9944, with 9891 and 9892 renumbered to 9945 and 9946 after the Long Island Rail Road massacre) were produced for the LIRR between 1984 and 1986 with 142 M3As (8000-8141) produced for Metro North, arriving between 1984 and early 1985.
This order would be the second-to-last handled by Budd, which in April 1987 left the railroad business after taking the name "TransitAmerica" under which the last M3s were produced though their builders plates kept the Budd name. The M3's also have the distinction of being one of the last, if not the last, third rail-powered cars to have the "blinking lights" effect at third rail gaps.
Read more about this topic: M1/M3 (railcar)
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