Metro will use some of the $35-million chunk of funds it receives this year from Congress to upgrade its erratic electrical system, in which power surges caused numerous delays this summer that left thousands of passengers stranded.

The money is part of a $104 million, three-year funding package approved in 2005 for power upgrades and the purchase of new railcars to alleviate overcrowding. Those funds are part of a $600 million campaign also funded through state and local sources.

Metro plans to add 122 new railcars under the program, and the electrical upgrades will allow the agency to put the longer eight-car trains on about a third of the lines during rush hour by next July, according to spokeswoman Candace Smith.

“This money is an important piece of the funding package, but it simply helps us catch up to existing needs,” U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin said in a joint statement with Sen. Barbara Mikulski, both D-Md.

wflook@dcexaminer.com