R68A (New York City Subway car)

R68A (New York City Subway car)
An R68A train on the at Kings Highway.
In service	May 18, 1988
Manufacturer	Kawasaki Heavy Industries
Built at	Kobe, Japan Yonkers, New York
Replaced	All remaining R10s and R27s, and some R30s.
Constructed	1988-1989
Entered service	1988-present
Number built	200
Number in service	200 (152 in revenue service during rush hours)
Formation	Stainless steel with fiberglass end bonnets
Fleet numbers	5001-5200
Capacity	70 (seated)
Operator(s)	New York City Subway
Depot(s)	Coney Island Yard[1]
Service(s) assigned	– 8 cars (PM rush)  – 152 cars
Specifications
Car body construction	stainless steel with fiberglass end bonnets
Train length	4 car train: 300 feet (91 m) 8 car train: 600 feet (180 m)
Car length	75 ft (22.86 m)
Width	10 ft (3,048 mm)
Height	12.08 ft (3,682 mm)
Platform height	3.76 ft (1.15 m)
Doors	8
Maximum speed	55 mph (89 km/h)
Weight	92,720 lb (42,057 kg)
Traction system	AdTranz E-Cam Propulsion with Westinghouse 1447J motors (115 hp or 85.8 kW on all axles)
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)	emergency brakes
Coupling system	Westinghouse H2C
Headlight type	halogen light bulbs
Track gauge	4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge

R68A is a B Division New York City Subway car order consisting of 200 cars built by Kawasaki Rail Car Company. These cars were built in Kobe, Japan from 1988 to 1989. The cars replaced all of the remaining R10s, R27s, and unrebuilt R30s, that were retired between 1989 and 1991. The R68As were built with American and Japanese parts. The R68A's had their final assembly at the Kawasaki plant in Yonkers, New York.^[2]

Description

The R68 was the fourth R-type contract and the last to be built with 75-foot (22.86 m) length (the previous three being the R44, R46 and R68). 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. Due to the fact that 75-foot (22.86 m) cars suffer from clearance issues as well as the inability to run on the BMT Eastern Division, subway car orders made afterward, (R143, R160A/B, R179, and eventually R211) have returned to the former IND style of 60-foot (18.29 m) cars which can run safely on the entire "B" division.

The first R68A cars were delivered to New York on April 12, 1988 and transferred to TA facilities the following day.^[3]

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 of 5010-5001-5006-5008-5009-5007-5004-5005.^[3] Originally the R68A order was supposed to be an 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.^[2][4]

R68As are currently based out of the Coney Island Yard and assigned to the B, with one set assigned to the A that runs during the PM rush hour. They are scheduled to remain in service until at least 2025^[5] and the MTA is proposing mid-life technological upgrades for the fleet, including LED destination signs and automated announcements.

Differences between R68s and R68As

Although the R68s and R68As look similar to each other, there are a few differences between the two car types.

• The Westinghouse Amrail Company built the R68s, while Kawasaki built the R68As.
• The door to the operator's cab slides open on an R68A as opposed to swinging open on an R68.
• The R68 and R68A fleets have different window frames.
• Unlike the R68s, the R68As do not feature rims around the red door indicator lights.
• The "MTA New York City Subway" logos are arranged differently between the two car types.
• The side ribbing runs all the way to the car ends and side doors on an R68, but taper off on approach on an R68A.
• Only the R68s have a metal bar separating the side sign from window, while the R68A has one solid pane of glass.
• The R68s have unit numbers in the 2000-series while the R68As have numbers in the 5000-series.
• The R68As have the speaker holes on the ceiling of the car arranged in a polygonal shape, while the R68s have the speaker holes in a circle.
• Door lights at the car ends of the R68A, by the storm door, point down to the seat, while on the R68s, they point towards the other end of the car.

See also

• R68 (New York City Subway car) - a similar car model built by Westinghouse AM-Rail Company, ANF Industrie of Paris, Jeumont Schneider, and Alstom

References

1. New York Subway Barn Assignments. December 2014
2. Levine, Richard (March 13, 1987). "M.T.A. PICKS NEW SUBWAY CARS FROM JAPAN OVER A CONSORTIUM". New York Times. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
3. "www.nycsubway.org: The New York Transit Authority in the 1980s". www.nycsubway.org. Retrieved 2016-01-24.
4. Levine, Richard (February 24, 1987). "Transit Authority Is Critical of its Newest Subway Cars". New York Times. Retrieved January 24, 2016.
5. MTA Capital Program Oversight Committee Hearing, June 2010 (page 20)

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

• nycsubway.org - R68A page information
• BMT-IND Car Assignments - December 6, 2015
• New York City Subway Car Fleet June 2010 through December 2015
• Car Status/Assignment