Abstract: An electrically operated hook-type coupler for attachment to an end of a railway transit vehicle for joining adjacent ends of a pair of such railway transit vehicles, in which a gathering core is provided at the forward end of a coupler head, with a hook member pivotally mounted within the gathering core, and being pivotal between a latch position and an unlatch position for engaging and disengaging a comparable hook member, and further including a spring to bias the hook member to the latch position. A driving device is also included within the gathering core for forcibly pivoting the hook member to the unlatch position to uncouple the hook member from any other hook member, while an electrically operated actuator is provided outside of the gathering core, which in response to appropriate signal, will activate the driving device to disengage the hook member. A lever arm is also provided to permit manual operation of the driving device to disengage the hook member.