New York City Subway rolling stock

File:Centennial Holiday Shopper’s Special.jpg

The "Centennial Holiday Shopper's Special", a train of R1, R4, R7A, and R9 cars that ran during the Subway Centennial in late 2004 on the Brighton Line, R1 #100 leading through the Ave. H station.
© 2004 Metropolitan Transportation Authority

The New York City Subway is a large rapid transit system, and has a large fleet of rolling stock. Old cars, some from the original companies (IRT and BMT), are preserved at the New York Transit Museum, while others have been sold to private individuals, rail and trolley museums. Between 1985 and 1989 some of the IRT trains were painted red, giving them the name Redbirds. Since then, all of these cars have been replaced by more modern subway trains between 2000 and 2005. As of April 2008, many other cars that are older (R-32 through R-42) are beginning to be retired, now that the R160 order has been partially completed.

General Overhaul Program

The "2007 Holiday Shopper's Special", December Sundays, a train of R1, R4, R7A, and R9 subway cars running in special service at the 23 Street (6 Avenue) station), R1 #100 at the end of this train as (V) service between Lower East Side-2nd Av & Queens Plaza only.

The General Overhaul Program (GOH) was a mid-life overhaul program for neglected subway cars which involved thorough rebuilding of the fleet. Recently, the new Scheduled Maintenance System program has replaced the GOH program by ensuring that trains do not reach a state in which they would need such an overhaul. The car types which were part of the MTA NYCT GOH program are the IRT Redbirds (R26, R28, R29, R33, R33 WF, R36, R36 WF), as well as the IND/BMT Cars (110 R10, GE R30, R32, R38, R40, R40A, R40M, R42, R44 and R46). These cars were rebuilt between 1985 and 1992.

What does "R" stand for?

A track geometry car work car at Jay Street-Borough Hall.

A work train in 59th Street–Columbus Circle station

The New York City Board of Transportation settled on a system of documentation that is still in place under MTA New York City Transit. This included a prefix letter or letters that indicated the Department that the specific documentation, followed by a series of numbers of a length defined by the specific department concerned. For example, the Surface Department used the letter "S", while the Rapid Transit Department used the letter "R".

R-type listing

Contract #	Year built	Division	Builder	Fleet total	Car numbers	Year retired	Current services	Denotes
R1	1930-1931	IND	American Car and Foundry	300	100-399	1977	none
R4	1932-1933	IND	American Car and Foundry	500	400-899	1977	none
R-6-3	1935-1936	IND	American Car and Foundry	250	900-1149	1977	none
R-6-2	1936	IND	Pullman Company	150	1150-1299	1977	none
R-6-1	1936	IND	Pressed Steel Company	100	1300-1399	1977	none
R7	1937	IND	American Car and Foundry, Pullman Company	150	1400-1474 - ACF 1475-1549 - Pullman	1977	none
R7A	1938	IND	American Car and Foundry, Pullman Company	100	1550-1599 - Pullman 1600-1649 - ACF	1977	none
R9	1940	IND	American Car and Foundry, Pressed Steel Company	153	1650-1701 - ACF 1702-1802 - Pressed Steel Car	1977	none
R10	1948-1949	IND	American Car and Foundry	400	1803-1852, 3000-3349	1989	none	Car number series selected to bracket the Pre-Unification BMT number series 1853-2999.
R11	1949	BMT/IND	Budd Company	10	8010-8019	1977	none	Number series selected to continue from the Pre-unification BMT number series. Test trains, rebuilt into R34 cars in 1965
R12	1948	IRT	American Car and Foundry	100	5703-5802	1981	none	Car Number series selected to continue from the Pre-unification IRT number series. Rollsigns displayed Post-unification IRT number series, first introduced in 1948.
R14	1949	IRT	American Car and Foundry	150	5803-5952	1984	none
R15	1950	IRT	American Car and Foundry	100	5953-5999, 6200-6252	1984	none
R16	1955	BMT/IND	American Car and Foundry	200	6300-6499	1987	none
R17	1955-1956	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	400	6500-6899	1988	none
R21	1956	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	250	7050-7299	1987	none
R22	1957	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	450	7300-7749	1987	none
R26	1959-1960	IRT	American Car and Foundry	110	7750-7859	2002	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R27	1960	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	230	8020-8249	1990	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R28	1960-1961	IRT	American Car and Foundry	100	7860-7959	2002	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R29	1962-1963	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	236	8570-8805	2002	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R30	1961	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	320	8250-8351 8412-8569	1993	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R30A	1961	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	60	8352-8411	1993	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R32 / R32A	1964	IND/BMT	Budd Company	600	R32A: 3350-3649 R32: 3650-3949	still in service	A, C, E, F, and R	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor Some cars retired.
R33	1962-1963	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	500	8806-9305	2003	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R33 WF	1962-1963	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	40	9306-9345	2003	none	single cars, some now in work service, built for IRT Flushing Line
R34	see R11
R36	1963-1964	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	34	9524-9557	2003	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R36 WF	1963-1964	IRT	St. Louis Car Company	390	9346-9523, 9558-9769	2003	none	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor
R38	1966-1967	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	200	3950-4149	still in service	A and C	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor Some cars retired.
R39	Never built	IRT/BMT
R40	1968-1969	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	200	4150-4349 (originally 4150-4249, 4350-4449)	still in service	B and sometimes on N, Q, W, and D (New York Yankees Special service)	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor slanted ends Some cars retired.
R40A/R40M	1968-1969	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	200	4350-4449 (R40A), 4450-4549 (R40M) (originally 4250-4349, 4450-4549)	still in service	B and sometimes on N, Q, W, and D (Yankees Special service)	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor slanted ends on 4350-4449
R42	1969-1970	IND/BMT	St. Louis Car Company	400	4550-4949	still in service	A, J, M, and Z, 4665 on B	Married Pairs Even numbered cars have Motor Generator and battery Odd numbered cars have Air Compressor Some cars retired.
R44	1971-1972	IND/BMT/SIR	St. Louis Car Company	352	5202-5479 (originally 100-387), 388-435, 436-466 (even numbers only)	still in service	A, Rockaway Park Shuttle and SIR	Even numbered cars have single cabs, and are known as "A" cars. Odd numbered cars have blind ends, and are known as "B" cars. All NYCT cars are in A-B-B-A configuration as 4-car sets with even numbers on outside, Staten Island cars all singles
R46	1975-1978	IND/BMT	Pullman Company	754	5482-6207 (originally 500-1227), 6208-6258 (even numbers only, originally 1228-1278)	still in service	F, G, R, V and rarely on E	Even numbered cars have single cabs, and are known as "A" cars. Odd numbered cars have blind ends, and are known as "B" cars. Most cars are in A-B-B-A configuration as 4-car sets. Higher numbered cars are in A+A configuration as coupled A Cars, with one pair being an A-B.
R55	Never built	IND/BMT
R62	1983-1985	IRT	Kawasaki Heavy Industries	325	1301-1625	still in service	3 and sometimes on 4	originally single cars, now 5-car sets
R62A	1984-1987	IRT	Bombardier	825	1651-2475	still in service	1, 7, 42nd Street Shuttle, and occasionally on the 3 and 4	originally single cars, some still singles, most in 5-car sets
R68	1986-1988	IND/BMT	Westinghouse-Amrail	425	2500-2924	still in service	D, N, Franklin Avenue Shuttle, W, sometimes on B and Q	originally single cars, Cars 2500-2915 now in 4-car sets and Cars 2916-2924 are singles used for the Franklin Avenue Shuttle.
R68A	1988-1989	IND/BMT	Kawasaki Heavy Industries	200	5001-5200	still in service	Q, W and occasionally on B, D and N	originally single cars, now 4-car sets
R110A (Built as Contract R130)	1992	IRT	Kawasaki Heavy Industries	10	8001-8010	1999	none	New Technology demonstrator, 5-car sets
R110B (Built as Contract R131)	1992	IND/BMT	Bombardier	9	3001-3009	2000	none	New Technology demonstrator, 3-car sets, 67 foot car
R142	1999-2003	IRT	Bombardier	1030	1101-1250, 6301-7180	still in service	2, 4, and 5	New Technology 5-car sets
R142A/S	1999-2004	IRT	Kawasaki Heavy Industries	600	7211-7810	still in service	4 and 6	New Technology 5 car sets
R143	2001-2003	IND/BMT	Kawasaki Heavy Industries	212	8101-8312	still in service	L	New Technology 4-car sets, CBTC-compatible, first new 60-foot cars in over 30 years.
R160A	2005-2008	IND/BMT	Alstom	1020	R160 A-1: 8313-8652 (4-car sets) R160 A-2: 8653-8712 (5 car sets)	still in service	A-1: J, L, M, and Z A-2: N	New Technology 60 foot cars (Delivery still in process)
R160B	2005-2008	IND/BMT	Kawasaki Heavy Industries	680	8713-8972 (Base Order) 8973-9232 (Option 1)	still in service	N	New Technology 5-car sets, 60 foot cars Base Order delivery completed on April 16, 2008. (Delivery still in process)

Notes

File:Train of Many Colors.jpg

The "Train of Many Colors" operates in late 2004 as a Subway Centennial special on the #7 line.
© 2004 Metropolitan Transportation Authority

The "Train of Many Colors" makes another appearance on the #7 line in 2008, commemorating the last Opening Day at Shea Stadium.

• Most IND/BMT cars are 60 feet long unless noted; all IRT cars are 51 feet.
• R44, R46, R68, R68A are 75 feet long
• All cars R38 and after are stainless steel.
• Air conditioning is standard on all cars R42 and later. R38s 4140-49 and R40s 4350-4549 were also delivered with A/C, and R32s and R38s 3950-4139 were rebuilt with A/C. All current roster cars used in revenue service are equipped with air conditioning.
• "Number of cars" is the total number built per model and does not account for cars wrecked, scrapped, etc.
• Redbirds are R26, 28, 29, 30, 33 and 36. Many cars are still in service as work trains.
• R39 and R55 were never built.
• During World War II, a group of old New York Subway (actually, Elevated line) cars dating from the late 1800s was sent west to the San Francisco Bay Area by the United States Maritime Commission for use by the Shipyard Railway, a temporary wartime electric line transporting workers to the Kaiser Shipyards. After the war, most were sold to be used as units in a local motel, but their whereabouts afterwards is unknown. Two of them however were acquired and have been restored by the Western Railway Museum in Rio Vista, California. (See photos at )

External links

• nycsubway.org - New York City Subway Cars
• JoeKorNer - R-Type Cars 1932 to Present
• JoeKorNer - 'R' Type Roster (includes non-train contracts)
• Forgotten NY Subway Link

References

• Sansone, Gene. Evolution of New York City subways: An illustrated history of New York City's transit cars, 1867-1997. New York Transit Museum Press, New York, 1997. ISBN 978-0963749284.
• Kramer, Frederick A. Building the Independent Subway. Quadrant Press, Inc.; New York,1990. ISBN 0-915276-50-X