R68A (New York City Subway car)
The R68A is a B Division New York City Subway car order consisting of 200 cars built between 1988 and 1989 by Kawasaki Rail Car Company in Kobe, Japan, with final assembly done at the Kawasaki plant in Yonkers, New York.[4] A total of 200 cars were built, arranged in four-car sets.
| R68A | |
|---|---|
 An R68A train on the B at Prospect Park | |
 Interior of an R68A car | |
| In service | 1988–present |
| Manufacturer | Kawasaki Heavy Industries |
| Built at | Kobe, Japan; Yonkers, New York (final assembly) |
| Family name | SMEE |
| Replaced | |
| Constructed | 1988–1989 |
| Entered service | May 18, 1988 |
| Number built | 200 |
| Number in service | 200 (168 in revenue service during rush hours) |
| Formation | 4 cars per trainset |
| Fleet numbers | 5001–5200 |
| Capacity | 70 (seated) |
| Operator(s) | New York City Subway |
| Depot(s) | Coney Island Yard[1] |
| Service(s) assigned |  – 8 cars (1 train, PM rush, in rotation with a R68 consist) –152 cars (19 trains, AM rush) 144 cars (18 trains, PM rush)   – 16 cars (2 trains)[2][3] |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | stainless steel with fiberglass end bonnets |
| Train length | 4 car train: 300 feet (91.44 m) 8 car train: 600 feet (182.88 m) |
| Car length | 74 ft 8.5 in (22.77 m) (over anticlimbers) |
| Width | 10 ft (3,048 mm) (over threshold) |
| Height | 12.08 ft (3,682 mm) |
| Platform height | 3.76 ft (1.15 m) |
| Doors | 8 sets of 50-inch (1,270 mm) wide side doors per car |
| Maximum speed | 55 mph (89 km/h) |
| Weight | 92,720 lb (42,057 kg) |
| Traction system | AdTranz E-Cam Propulsion (115 hp or 85.8 kW on all axles) |
| Traction motors | Westinghouse 1447J |
| Power output | 115 hp (85.8 kW) on all axles |
| Acceleration | 2.5 mph/s (4.0 km/(h⋅s)) |
| Electric system(s) | 600 V DC Third rail |
| Current collection method | Contact shoe |
| Braking system(s) | WABCO (dynamic and friction), WABCO tread brake rigging model TBU GR90 |
| Safety system(s) | dead man's switch, tripcock |
| Coupling system | Westinghouse H2C |
| Headlight type | halogen light bulbs |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
The R68A was the fourth and final R-type contract to be built with 75-foot (22.86 m) cars (the previous three being the R44, R46, and R68). The contract had been given to Kawasaki because the manufacturers of the base R68 order, the joint venture Westinghouse-Amrail Company, had experienced significant integration issues that led to performance problems with the R68s. The first R68A train entered service on May 18, 1988. The R68As are scheduled to remain in service until at least 2025–2030.
Description
The R68As are numbered 5001–5200. They were the last cars to be built with a length of 75 feet (22.86 m) (the previous three being the R44, R46, and R68). While the 75-foot length allows more room for sitting and standing passengers per car than the 60-foot (18.29 m) length that was previously used, these cars suffer from clearance issues and cannot run on the BMT Eastern Division. Additionally, the reduced number of doors on a train of eight 75-foot (22.86 m) cars have led to increased boarding and dwelling times. As a result, subsequent B Division subway car orders have returned to the previous length of 60 feet (18.29 m), starting with the R143 order in 2001.
The R68As are currently based out of the Coney Island Yard and are assigned to the B, G, N, and W. One set (in rotation with the R68) also runs on the A train during weekday afternoon rush hours. Like the previous R68 order, the R68As were originally single units, with a full-width cab on one end and a half-width on the other end. They were eventually linked into four-car sets and continue to run in this configuration.
History
Delivery and revenue service
The first R68A cars were delivered to New York on April 12, 1988, and transferred to TA facilities the following day.[5] The cars replaced all of the remaining R10s, R27s, and unrebuilt R30s, all of which were retired between 1989 and 1993. The R68As were built with American and Japanese parts.
The R68As' first entry to revenue service was on May 18, 1988, on the Bronx and Manhattan half of the divided D train with the first fleet consisting of the consist 5010-5001-5006-5008-5009-5007-5004-5005.[5] Originally, the R68A order was supposed to be a second option order of the R68. However, due to poor performance from the R68 cars produced by Westinghouse-Amrail, along with other issues, the MTA gave the order to Kawasaki, with an offer of $958,000 per car versus Westinghouse-Amrail's offer of $1,012,200 per car.[4][6]
References
- "Car/Yard Assignments" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 5, 2019.
- https://erausa.org/pdf/bulletin/2020/2020-12-bulletin.pdf
- "Subdivision 'B' Car Assignments: Cars Required April 27, 2020" (PDF). The Bulletin. Electric Railroaders' Association. 63 (6): 14. June 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
- Levine, Richard (March 13, 1987). "M.T.A. PICKS NEW SUBWAY CARS FROM JAPAN OVER A CONSORTIUM". New York Times. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
- "www.nycsubway.org: The New York Transit Authority in the 1980s". www.nycsubway.org. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
- Levine, Richard (February 24, 1987). "Transit Authority Is Critical of its Newest Subway Cars". New York Times. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
- MTA Capital Program Oversight Committee Hearing, June 2010 (page 20) Archived November 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
- Request For Information No. 9003 | Integrated Communications System on NYCT R62/R62A and R68/R68A Class Rail Cars
- Grynbaum, Michael M. (June 16, 2011). "Transit Agency Weighs Digital Upgrade for Subway Cars". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
Further reading
- 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
External links
Media related to R68A (New York City Subway car) at Wikimedia Commons
- nycsubway.org - R68A page information
- Korman, Joe (January 12, 2018). "BMT-IND Car Assignments". JoeKorNer.
- Korman, Joe (November 6, 2016). "New York City Subway Car Fleet June 2010 through November 2016". JoeKorNer.