TORONTO - GO Transit is spending $125 million to purchase 50 bi-level railway coaches from Bombardier (TSX:BBD.B) for its inter-regional commuter service into Toronto.
The 162-passenger coaches will expand the system's capacity by 8,000 commuters a day.
Production of the coaches is scheduled to begin in June at Bombardier's facility in Thunder Bay, Ont., with deliveries beginning in the fall.
"There is a major demand for GO to increase its train services, from both a customer service and ridership perspective," said GO Transit president Gary McNeil.
Ontario Transportation Minister Kathleen Wynne said the infrastructure investment will create and support jobs and support the provincial economy.
The order demonstrates "our customer's renewed confidence in the products we deliver," said Raymond Bachant, North American president of Bombardier Transportation.
The Bombardier-designed double-decker coaches have been part of GO Transit's fleet since 1978.
GO Transit operates Canada's largest commuter rail network, linking Hamilton and communities surrounding the Greater Toronto area with Canada's largest city.
Bombardier Transportation is the Berlin-based rail division of aerospace and railway manufacturer Bombardier Inc.
It said the railway car is the most popular multi-level commuter rail car in North America -- in use in 13 major cities, including Montreal, Vancouver, Los Angeles and Dallas.
The order will include the 1,000th car manufactured in Thunder Bay.
Bombardier's Thunder Bay plant is also building new subway and light rail cars for the Toronto Transit Commission and Metrolinx, the provincial government agency that runs Go Transit.
On the Toronto Stock Exchange, Bombardier's shares were ahead a penny at $6.11 in morning trading Monday.
