Gallery Car
This article, Gallery Car, has recently been created via the Articles for creation process. Please check to see if the reviewer has accidentally left this template after accepting the draft and take appropriate action as necessary.
Reviewer tools: Inform author |
Gallery Car | |
---|---|
![]() Metra Gallery Cars, Captured from Canal St. in Chicago | |
Manufacturer | Pullman Company, Budd Company, Amerail, and Nippon Sharyo |
Constructed | 1950s-present |
Entered service | 1950-present |
Capacity | 153-161 |
Specifications | |
Car body construction | LAHT steel body on a steel frame |
Car length | 85 feet (26 m) |
Entry | Step |
Doors | 1 per side |
Track gauge | 4 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 a multitude of different manufacturers since its creation, those being Budd, St. Louis Car Company, Amerail, and the latest: 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]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Bike_Car_%28559390353%29.jpg/220px-Bike_Car_%28559390353%29.jpg)
Although this was a very cost saving and efficient design for its era,[1] it is no longer up to date with modern standards, as most commuter railroads no longer have budget cuts, there are much newer cars, and the design is quite old now. Metra can be used as an example: The agency has only ever used the Gallery Car, and although it did save them money from having to hire more conductors, nowadays the car simply is not up to date with today's standards, and does look outdated compared to current day cars like the Bombardier Bi-Level or the Hyundai Rotem Bi-Level.
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 NICTO 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.
Overtime, 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
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/20160212_20_Last_Run_of_Metra_Electric_Highliners_%2828792378475%29.jpg/220px-20160212_20_Last_Run_of_Metra_Electric_Highliners_%2828792378475%29.jpg)
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 purchasing custom Coradia Bi-Levels from Alstom,[11] and Caltrain getting Stadler KISS EMUs from Stadler Rail,[12] to become fully electrified.
References
- ^ a b Jones, Alan. "C&NW Gallery Cars No. 59& Metra No. 7715 - Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum". www.hodrrm.org. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ a b "Gallery Type Bi-Level Passenger Car for Caltrans". www.n-sharyo.co.jp. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ "RailPictures.Net Photo: Ink Metra Cab Control Car at Waukegan, Illinois by Alan Baker". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ "RailPictures.Net Photo: METX 8427 Metra Metra Cab Car at Chicago, Illinois by David Dupuis". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ "RailPictures.Net Photo: METX 189 Metra EMD F40PHM-3 at Hinsdale, Illinois by Johnny Hansen". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ "Bi-Level EMU for NICTD (2009-)". www.n-sharyo.co.jp. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ a b "C&NW Bi-Level Commuter Cars". www.kls2.com. Retrieved 2022-03-22.
- ^ a b c d "Equipment & Train Consist". Virginia Railway Express. November 21, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
- ^ 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.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "Metra Board approves purchase of up to 500 modern railcars | Metra". metra.com. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ "KISS Double-Decker Electric Multiple Unit EMU" (PDF). tillier.net. Retrieved 18 March 2022.