The MBTA is drawing up terms of a Technical Specification and Request for Proposals (RFP) to buy new diesel vehicles in support of its ongoing improvement project for the Fairmont Commuter Rail Line.

The T announced it was making moves to secure “High Floor Diesel Multiple Unit” (DMU) vehicles in a public notice last week.

The DMU vehicles are main fixtures of the the T’s Indigo Line – the planned commuter line, which would extend service beyond South Station into the Fort Point neighborhood, slated for completion in 2024.

The DMUs will “operate primarily on the nine-mile long, mixed traffic commuter line between Readville and South Station,” the public notice states. The DMUs must be designed to operate across the entire Commuter Rail system, and meet “all governing laws, rules and regulations.”

The public notice is signed by the T’s general manager, Beverly Scott, MassDOT Secretary and CEO Richard Davey, and another MassDOT executive. The notice was published online on RailwayAge.com, and is intended to spread the word to as many potential contractors and subcontractors as possible, and “solicit DMU information from DMU manufacturers and suppliers,” for the T’s RFP and Technical Specification process.

Image courtesy of the MBTA/Edwards and Kelcey