CHEAPER THAN LIONEL. Slightly used, well-maintained 161 passenger gallery coaches, $1 each. What's the deal? Chicago's Metra has taken delivery of some 300 ADA-compliant coaches over the past few years, and it is disposing of older coaches. Virginia Railway Express and the new commuter train operation in Nashville (Nashville? Shall we call it the Grand Ol' Reliable?) have taken delivery of these coaches for a buck each, and the new commuter train operation in Salt Lake City (Must. Research. These.) got some for free. Why?

[Federal Transportation Administration] spokesman Paul Griffo said even though that’s true, Metra could have disposed of the cars as it saw fit – but when a transit agency agrees to transfer cars to another agency, and those cars were either bought or refurbished with federal funds, then the transfer price must be free, Griffo added.

And Metra came out ahead about $25K per car.

Metra officials said the sale let them avoid an estimated $25,000-per-car scrapping cost.

Because the cars were built from older carbon steel alloys that no longer have much market value, “we would have had to pay a scrapper to take them,” [Metra spokesman Dan] Schnolis said.

So why not hang onto the cars and make the rush-hour trains longer, or run more trains? Two reasons. First, many of the trains already use the whole platform when they stop. Platforms aren't cheap, particularly if the stations are already hemmed in by roads and other buildings. Second, there aren't a lot of paths left at rush hour for the trains; there's a queuing problem if one attempts to run trains on closer headways, and in some circumstances the peak-hour capacity of the line will actually be less with more trains, as the additional trains impede the progress of following trains.