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R143 (New York City Subway car)

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"R143" redirects here. For the road, see Route 143. For the refrigerant "1,1,2-Trifluoroethane", see List of refrigerants.
R143 (New York City Subway car)
An R143 train on the Template:NYCS-bull-small at New Lots Avenue.
Interior of an R143 car.
In service2001-present
ManufacturerKawasaki Heavy Industries
Built atYonkers, New York; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Kobe, Japan
Family nameNTT (new technology train)
ReplacedR40s, R40As, and R42s on the Template:NYCS-bull-small service (reassigned to other routes, but not scrapped)
Constructed2001-2003
Number built212
Number in service208 (152 in revenue service during rush hours)
Formation4-car sets (2 A cars and 2 B cars)
Fleet numbers8101-8312
Capacity240 (A car)
246 (B car)
OperatorsNew York City Subway
DepotsEast New York Yard[1][2]
Service(s) assigned"L" train[3][4]
As of June 30, 2024
Specifications
Car body constructionStainless steel with fiberglass rear bonnets
Train length4 car train: 240.84 feet (73.41 m)
8 car train: 481.68 feet (146.82 m)
Car length60.21 feet (18.35 m)
Width9.77 feet (2,978 mm)
Height12.13 feet (3,697 mm)
Platform height3.76 ft (1.15 m)
Doors8 per car
Maximum speed55 mi (89 km)
WeightA car:83,700 lb (38,000 kg)
B car:81,900 lb (37,100 kg)
Traction systemBombardier MITRAC propulsion system, 3-Phase AC Traction Motors Model 1508C
Prime mover(s)electric motor
Power output150 hp (111.9 kW) per axle
Acceleration2.5 mph/s (4.0 km/(h⋅s))
Deceleration2.5 mph/s (4.0 km/(h⋅s))
(full service),
3.2 mph/s (5.1 km/(h⋅s))
(emergency)
AuxiliariesSAFT 250AH battery (B car)
Electric system(s)600 V DC Third rail
Current collector(s)Contact shoe
Braking system(s)Dynamic braking propulsion system; WABCO RT96 tread brake system; safety brakes
Safety system(s)emergency brakes
Headlight typeincandescent light bulb
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

The R143 is a standard gauge New York City Subway B Division new technology (NTT) car built by Kawasaki in 2001-2003. The cars are mainly used on the BMT Canarsie Line (L train), but have been used on other BMT Eastern Division routes as well over their history. The New York City Transit Authority owns 212 R143 cars, numbered 8101 to 8312, and built for an average cost of about $1.5 million per car.

History

Kawasaki Rail Car, Inc. was awarded a $190 million contract for 100 new B Division cars in late December 1998, with an option for 112 more cars.[5] The new design was based on the A Division's R142A, which Kawasaki also built,[6] and incorporated many features from the R110A and R110B prototypes. Delivery began in late 2001, and a 30-day test with one train of eight cars (8101-8108) began on December 4, 2001.[7] According to Kawasaki, the test was "extremely successful".[6]

R143s began running on the BMT Canarsie Line (L service) on February 12, 2002,[8] and all 212 cars were delivered to the subway by March 2003.[9] In addition to running on the L,[10] where the R143s displaced the R40/R40As and most of the R42s,[11] they also displaced the R42s on the M weekend shuttle service on the BMT Myrtle Avenue Line. The R143s on the M were then later displaced by R160As in February 2008. One Person Train Operation was tested on the L during mid-2005.[12][13]

Eight R143s numbered 8205-8212 were originally delivered with experimental Siemens traction motors to test the traction motors that would be later found in some of the R160B cars (numbers 8843-9102).[14][15] These cars were eventually refitted with the Bombardier traction motors found on all other R143s.

The 212 cars delivered were expected to provide enough service for years, but the fast growth of the Williamsburg neighborhood overloaded the L by mid-2006.[16]

On June 21, 2006, an eight-car R143 train overshot the bumper at the end of the tracks in the Canarsie Yard after the operator suffered a seizure. Lead car 8277 suffered significant damage and has been stripped of damaged parts for repair. It was sent to the Kawasaki plant in Yonkers while the rest of the set (8278-8280) is at the 207th Street Yard. However, 8277 has been worked on for the past 5 years at the 207th Street and Coney Island Repair Shops and the repair work continues to be done.[17] 8278 also suffered a bit of body damage but was repaired sometime between 2009-2011 and coupled back up with 8279-8280.[18][19] 8277 has been put back into a four-car set with 8278-8280, but are in need of some component replacement to become operational.[20]

Differences between the R143s and R160s

The R143s are almost identical to the R160s,[21] and both were built by Kawasaki (except the R160As). However, there are differences between the two car models:

  • The R143s have standard plastic card route "strip maps", with 63 LEDs in the map,[22] as well as LED advertisements, while R160s have the FIND system, with 15 "next stop" slots,[21] and Arts for Transit cards, similar to the R142s and R188s.
  • The American flag on the ends of the A-unit cars is placed above the MTA New York City Subway logo on the R160s, but below it on the R143s.
  • The R143s have Bombardier traction motors, like the R142A and R188 cars, while R160s have Alstom and Siemens traction motors.
  • The R143s have single storm doors at the blind ends, while the R160s have double storm doors at the blind ends.
  • The taillights on the R143s use incandescent bulbs with reflectors while the R160 taillights use LEDs with their characteristic dot-matrix look.
  • The rim around the interior LED lights are black on the R160s and white on the R143s.
  • The LED side signs are a smaller font on R143s than they are on R160s.
  • The interior paneling of the R143s is a light-teal colored textured material, whereas the R160s feature smooth, glossy white interiors.
  • The curved celling molding is thicker and closer together on the R143s than on the R160s.
  • The propulsion sound of the R143 can be described as a rolling sound identical to the R142As and R188s, while the R160A cars have a stepped propulsion sound similar to R142s.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Car Assignments: Cars Required June 30, 2024" (PDF). The Bulletin. 67 (7). Electric Railroaders' Association. July 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
  2. ^
    • 'Subdivision 'A' Car Assignment Effective December 19, 2021'. New York City Transit, Operations Planning. December 17, 2021.
    • 'Subdivision 'B' Car Assignment Effective December 19, 2021'. New York City Transit, Operations Planning. December 17, 2021.
  3. ^ "Car Assignments: Cars Required June 30, 2024" (PDF). The Bulletin. 67 (7). Electric Railroaders' Association. July 2024. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
  4. ^ 'Subdivision B Car Assignment Effective June 30, 2024'. New York City Transit, Operations Planning. June 30, 2024.
  5. ^ "Metro Business; Subway Job to Kawasaki". The New York Times. December 30, 1998.
  6. ^ a b Kawasaki Rail Car, Inc., New York City Transit R143 Subway Cars, accessed April 14, 2007
  7. ^ "www.nycsubway.org". www.nycsubway.org.
  8. ^ Kennedy, Randy (July 31, 2002). "1,700 Subway Cars to Be Built Under Largest Such Contract in New York History". The New York Times. p. B3.
  9. ^ "Kawasaki completes NYCT R143 order. (Market).(New York City Transit)(subway cars contract)". Railway Age. HighBeam Research. March 1, 2003.
  10. ^ Patrick McGeehan, New York Times, Port Authority to Replace PATH Fleet for $499 Million, April 1, 2005, page B5
  11. ^ "Showing Image 5251". nycsubway.org.
  12. ^ On L Train, Drivers Perform Solo, Without Conductors, June 20, 2005, page B3
  13. ^ Conductors Are Returning to the Subway's L Line
  14. ^ R143 L with Seimens propulsion. YouTube. 10 May 2007.
  15. ^ R143 With Siemens Propulsion. YouTube. 18 June 2007.
  16. ^ New York Daily News, Oh, L, not enuf trains!, July 7, 2006
  17. ^ [1]
  18. ^ [2]
  19. ^ [3]
  20. ^ "New York City Subway Car Update" (PDF). The Bulletin (April 2016). Electric Railroaders' Association. March 30, 2016. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
  21. ^ a b Chan, Sewell (2005-11-30). "New Subway Cars Promise All Kinds of Information". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-10-27.
  22. ^ "The B24 Blog". b24blog.blogspot.com.
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