Have you ever been bored on the Metro, glanced around, and noticed a little badge indicating where the car was actually built? Many of the DC Metro’s current trains were constructed by Kawasaki in Lincoln, Nebraska. Some older ones—which you might still encounter—originated in the unlikely location of Pistoia, a medieval city in Tuscany. No Metro cars have ever been manufactured in the Washington area.
But starting in 2028, you’ll be able to ride on a train that was built here. The 8000 series cars will be assembled at a new $100 million Hitachi factory in Hagerstown. WMATA has ordered 256 of them—part of a $2.2 billion contract stipulating that Hitachi has to make the trains here.
Hitachi recently hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the plant, offering a first look at the 307,000-square-foot facility. The huge building sits near a FedEx distribution center on what was until just a few years ago farmland. Inside, the space is an imposing expanse of concrete that’s crisscrossed with railroad tracks, allowing the cars-in-progress to roll along their assembly lines and, when complete, out a giant door in the side of the building. The factory can produce about 20 cars a month, with humans and robot arms working in a carefully orchestrated dance. In the new factory, the process will also integrate technologies like Spot, a robotic yellow “dog” made by Boston Dynamics that can inspect and photograph trains for safety issues at night while workers are at home…