R12 (New York City Subway car)

The R12s were numbered 5703–5802. They were the first mass-produced cars to feature electric door motors, as opposed to air-powered door motors (The R11/R34 prototypes were the very first cars with such features).

The R12s were the first "R" type contract order built for the A Division (referring to the practice of naming a car class by the letter "R" – which stands for rapid transit – followed by a number derived from the actual contract number). This practice originated from the R1 order built for the Independent Subway System. After the merger of the IRT, BMT, and IND in 1940, all subsequent subway car orders would follow the R contract.

There were two versions of the R12s: Westinghouse Electric-powered cars (5703–5752) and General Electric-powered cars (5753–5802).

The R12s bore several schemes during their service lives. The cars were delivered in two-tone gray scheme with orange stripes, then a solid bright red, and finally, repainted into the MTA's silver with blue stripe scheme.

Delivery of the cars began in June 1948.[1] The first R12s began service on the 7 (IRT Flushing Line) on July 13, 1948. All 100 cars were delivered by October 1948.[2]

The R12s ran on the Flushing Line until the arrival of the R33Ss and R36 World's Fairs in late 1963–early 1964. The R12s were then transferred to operate on other A-division routes. One particular assignment included all GE-powered cars being heavily modified (by deactivating the dynamic brakes and cutting out the third (parallel) notch on their controllers) and sent to the 8 (Third Avenue elevated line) in the Bronx during August 1969 and running there until that route's closing on April 29, 1973. In addition, four Westinghouse-powered R12 cars (5703–5706) were slightly modified for use on the Bowling Green–South Ferry Shuttle, and were so-equipped so that the center door of each car could be opened at South Ferry, while keeping the others closed. These cars were used until the shuttle was discontinued on February 12, 1977, when the cars were reassigned to the 3, since these four shuttle cars were inspected and maintained at Livonia Barn at the time, with the 3 route.

Retirement

Car 5782 (renumbered to 35782) at the 207th Street Yard, awaiting cosmetic restoration

Although officially replaced by the R62s (delivered 1983–85), most R12s were retired earlier due to service reductions in the 1970s that made the fleet redundant. Many R12s were also converted to work service following their retirement to replace older Lo-V work cars. The last R12 was pulled from passenger service in September 1981. All but two cars have since been taken off property to be scrapped, though several cars lasted as training vehicles or work cars for many years.

Two cars have been preserved:

• Car 5760 has been preserved by the New York Transit Museum since July 1976, and was repainted into its original two-tone gray and orange striped paint scheme.[3] The car is operational and has run on museum-sponsored nostalgia trains, specifically on the Train of Many Colors.
• Car 5782 (renumbered to 35782) is also being held for the New York Transit Museum. This car was formerly used for fire training. The car retains its MTA blue/silver livery paint scheme[4] and has been stored at the 207th Street Yard for many years. However, it is slated to receive only a cosmetic restoration; the car will not be restored to operational status.[5]

• R14 (New York City Subway car) - a follow-up order to the R12s, also built by American Car & Foundry Company.

• 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 978-0-9637492-8-4

• Media related to R12 (New York City Subway car) at Wikimedia Commons