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Yesterday, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) awarded a $499 million contract to Kawasaki Rail Car Inc. to design and build 340 new Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) passenger cars.

PANYNJ plans to replace its current cars, which averages 33 years old. Scheduled to be delivered between late 2008 and 2011, the cars will feature improved lighting, air conditioning, heating and signage, as well as cantilevered seats with storage room underneath and pre-recorded station announcements.

The cars are part of an $809 million modernization program under which PANYNJ also plans to purchase car maintenance equipment, renovate PATH’s Harrison Consolidated Maintenance Facility and complete preliminary work on a new signal system.

In turn, the modernization program is part of a multi-billion-dollar initiative designed to upgrade the PATH rail system. During the past three years, PANYNJ has spent $566 million to rebuild the Exchange Place Station, rail tunnels between New York and New Jersey, and build a temporary World Trade Center station.

This summer, the authority will break ground on a $2 billion transportation hub at the World Trade Center site. In addition, PANYNJ plans to upgrade the Fulton Street subway station and link downtown Manhattan with John F. Kennedy International Airport.