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Gallery Car

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Gallery Car
Metra Gallery Cars, Captured from Canal St. in Chicago
ManufacturerPullman Company, Budd Company, Amerail, and Nippon Sharyo
Constructed1950s-present
Entered service1950-present
Capacity153-161
Specifications
Car body constructionLAHT steel body on a steel frame
Car length85 feet (26 m)
EntryStep
Doors1 per side
Track gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

The Gallery Car is a passenger railcar, originally created by the Pullman Company. It has had four total different manufacturers since its creation, including Budd, St. Louis Car Company, Amerail, and Nippon Sharyo.

Design

Railcar

The Gallery Car is made of the usual stainless steel and is a bilevel, however there is a drop down in the middle to the first floor. This choice was made in particular to allow conductors to make a single pass through the car to collect passenger fares instead of having to go to each floor.[1]

A Caltrain Bike Car, also showing the dropdown in the middle of the second floor

The car height is near the same as a Superliner (16' 2"), being only approximately four inches shorter, at 15' ~10".[2] The height isn't the same across the brands, such as when comparing a Budd to an Amerail.[3][4][5]

Highliner II

An electric multiple unit (EMU) variant of the railcar has been produced by Nippon Sharyo, of which only Metra and the NICTD South Shore Line own and operate. They operate on overhead wires, and only have cab car variants, with each set containing two.[6]

History

The Gallery Car was constructed originally by Pullman and Budd in between the 1950s-70's, as 4 different models: The 7006A, 7600,[7] 8700,[7] and the Town Cars. The 8700 Series introduced the cab cars, with CN&W being the first customers for it.

Over time, as Pullman went Bankrupt, other companies began to manufacture the railcar, those mainly being Amerail and Nippon Sharyo.[2]

(Nippon Sharyo is the only current manufacturer left as all of its other manufacturers no longer exist).

Current owners

Owner Numbers Type Heritage Year Built Builder Disposition
Metra 700–787

790–795

Coach

Coach/Cab

Burlington Route 1950–65

1965

Budd Operating, rebuilt in 1973

700–740, 752, 781, 790–795 sold to MItrain in Michigan

796–815

816–820 7100–7121

Coach/Cab

Coach Coach

Burlington Northern 1973

1973 1977–78

Operating
6001–6194 Coach Metra 2002–05 Nippon Sharyo
7200–7382 Milwaukee Road 1961–80 Budd
7400–7497 Metra 1996–98 Amerail Operating, rebuilt in 2012
8200–8238 Coach/Cab Milwaukee Road 1961–74 Budd Operating
8239–8275 RTA 1978–80 Operating–Some have been converted to coaches.
8400–8478 Metra 1994–98 Morrison-Knudsen/Amerail Operating–Mainly assigned to the UP lines.
8501–8608 2002–05 Nippon Sharyo Operating
7700–7866 Coach Chicago and North Western 1960–70 Pullman Operating–Five have been purchased back due to money problems.
7600–7613 1955 St. Louis Retired–Two preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum
7650–7681 1956 Pullman Retired–One preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum
7867–7871 Rock Island 1970 Pullman 7869 now a bike car. Rest retired
7881–7885 Coach Rock Island 1970 Pullman Retired
7900–7901 Club Car Chicago and North Western 1955 St. Louis
8700–8763 Coach/Cab 1960–68 Pullman Retired–One preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum

8749 is a bicycle car.

VRE 710–730[8] Unspecified VRE 2006–08 Sumitomo / Nippon Sharyo Operating
800–819, 850–869, 870–879[8] Unspecified 2007-09
820–848†[8] Unspecified 2014
Music City Star 400-402 Cab Metra, CB&Q, RTA, MITrain Unspecified Budd, Previous Cars by Pullman Operating, Previous Pullmans Retired
500-503 Coach
BNSF 40-45 Track Inspection Transcisco Tours Unspecified Pullman Operating
Caltrain 3800-3825 Trailer-Luggage Caltrain 1985 Nippon Sharyo Operating
3826-3835 Trailer-Bike
3836-3841 Trailer
3842-3851 1986
3852-3865 2000
4000-4020 Cab-Bike 1985
4021-4026 2000

† Eight cars ordered in February 2012 with options for 42 more.[9] As of 2018, 21 further cars had been procured from these options.[8]

EMU current owners

Metra Highliner IIs, with the retired original Highliners in the background
Owner Numbers Type Heritage Year Built Builder Status
Metra 1201–1226 MU Coach Metra 2005 Nippon Sharyo Operating
1227–1238 2012 Sumitomo Group[10]
1239–1279 2013
1280-1386 2014-2016
1501–1630 Illinois Central 1971–1972 St. Louis Retired
1631–1666 1978–1979 Bombardier
South Shore Line 301-314 MU Coach South Shore Line 2009 Nippon Sharyo Operating

Future

Eventually this railcar will be phased out. Two large passenger railroads are getting new equipment to phase out the cars, with Metra and Virginia Railway Express purchasing custom Coradia Bi-Levels from Alstom,[11] [12]and Caltrain getting Stadler KISS EMUs from Stadler Rail,[13] to become fully electrified.

  • A Metra Train, with the closest car being a Budd.
    A Metra Train, with the closest car being a Budd.
  • A Caltrain Train, All of them being Nippon Sharyo.
    A Caltrain Train, All of them being Nippon Sharyo.
  • The Upper Level of a Gallery Car. Usually, there is a Rack in the Dropdown for Baggage.
    The Upper Level of a Gallery Car. Usually, there is a Rack in the Dropdown for Baggage.
  • Metra Cab Car No. 8473 having its plow cut off after the Clarendon Hills crash.
    Metra Cab Car No. 8473 having its plow cut off after the Clarendon Hills crash.

References

  1. ^ Jones, Alan. "C&NW Gallery Cars No. 59& Metra No. 7715 - Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum". www.hodrrm.org. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  2. ^ a b "Gallery Type Bi-Level Passenger Car for Caltrans". www.n-sharyo.co.jp. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  3. ^ "RailPictures.Net Photo: Ink Metra Cab Control Car at Waukegan, Illinois by Alan Baker". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
  4. ^ "RailPictures.Net Photo: METX 8427 Metra Metra Cab Car at Chicago, Illinois by David Dupuis". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
  5. ^ "RailPictures.Net Photo: METX 189 Metra EMD F40PHM-3 at Hinsdale, Illinois by Johnny Hansen". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
  6. ^ "Bi-Level EMU for NICTD (2009-)". www.n-sharyo.co.jp. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  7. ^ a b "C&NW Bi-Level Commuter Cars". www.kls2.com. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
  8. ^ a b c d "Equipment & Train Consist". Virginia Railway Express. November 21, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  9. ^ Buske, Jennifer (August 5, 2010). "Virginia Railway Express begins adding new locomotives to its fleet". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 11, 2012. Retrieved August 5, 2010.
  10. ^ Wronski, Richard (August 13, 2010). "Metra to buy 1st new cars for Electric Line in 5 years". Chicago Breaking News Center. Archived from the original on February 13, 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
  11. ^ "Metra Board approves purchase of up to 500 modern railcars | Metra". metra.com. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  12. ^ https://www.vre.org/sites/vre/assets/File/Notice%20of%20Contract%20Award%20-%20Alstom%20Transportation.pdf. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  13. ^ "KISS Double-Decker Electric Multiple Unit EMU" (PDF). tillier.net. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
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