News release: “Metro received a formal pre-award approval letter today, July 26, from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) for the procurement of the 7000 series rail cars from Kawasaki using Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act of 2008 (PRIIA) funds, allowing Metro to move forward with a notice to proceed. Retirement of the 1000 series cars, the oldest in the fleet, is Metro’s number one safety priority. The National Transportation Safety Board recommended that Metro’s 1000 series rail cars, the oldest in the fleet, be replaced with more modern vehicles that will be equipped with advanced crashworthiness systems technology. Of the 428 new cars, 128 of them will enable the expansion of Metro service on the Dulles rail corridor and 300 of the cars will be used to replace the 1000 series cars, which will improve safety and reliability of Metro’s fleet.”