46-498: R44 may refer to: R44 (New York City Subway car) R44 (South Africa) HMS Lagos (R44) , a destroyer of the Royal Navy R44: Risk of explosion if heated under confinement , a risk phrase Robinson R44 , a helicopter CCITT R.44, a telex standard [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles associated with
92-482: A bumper block at the Tottenville station. It was stored at 207th Street Yard and stripped of parts for other SIR cars; by 2013, it was scrapped. In May 2013, cars 399 and 466 were taken out of service after being damaged in a sideswipe. Both cars were also stripped of parts for other SIR cars. On December 18, 2009, two 4-car sets of New York City Transit R44s, one set being a contract Morrison-Knudsen rebuild and
138-639: A high design top speed of 70 mph (110 km/h) in anticipation of operation on new subway lines to be built, such as the Second Avenue Subway , which never opened while the cars were in subway service. On January 31, 1972, the R44s set the world speed record for a subway car, when a consist reached a speed of 87.75 mph (141.22 km/h) on the Long Island Rail Road 's main line between Woodside and Jamaica . With two motors per car disabled,
184-502: A newly designed WABCO-RT5 electronically and pneumatically controlled braking system also known as the P-Wire system, which did not fare well with this fleet of cars (similar systems also plagued the R46s), since most of the shop personnel were not adequately trained to deal with the P-Wire braking system's sophisticated fail/safe design for automatic train operation. The system would sometimes trigger
230-551: A train of eight 75-foot (22.86 m) cars increased boarding and dwell times, so recent car orders have returned to ten 60-foot (18.29 m) cars, starting with the R143 . The interior design was very different from previous models. The R44s had orange and yellow plastic bucket seats—a feature that would be incorporated into the other 75-foot (22.86 m) B-division cars and the A-division R62s and R62As . The seats were protected from
276-432: A two-note warning tone, the first two notes of Westminster Quarters , that sounds before the doors begin to close as the train prepares to leave the station. When the cars were built, the chime was sounded four seconds before the doors closed, but the time delay was later removed. This has become the signature sound of the subway and is used with all subsequent cars. The R44s were also the first NYCT subway cars to feature
322-510: Is a New York City Subway car model built by the St. Louis Car Company from 1971 to 1973 for the B Division and the Staten Island Railway (SIR). The cars replaced many R1–9 series cars, and all remaining 1925 Standard Steel built SIRTOA ME-1 trains, providing Staten Island with a new fleet of railcars. The R44 fleet originally consisted of 352 cars, of which 56 remain in service, all on
368-416: The 1964 New York World's Fair . A total of 40 cars were built, arranged as single cars. While in regular service, each R33S was coupled to five two-car consists of R36 cars to make 11-car trains for the 7 and <7> routes. The R33S fleet entered service on September 26, 1963, and was originally painted in a light blue turquoise "Bluebird" scheme. The fleet was overhauled in the mid-1980s, during which
414-481: The 3 and 6 to the 7 , in turn replacing R33S/R36 trains. The last car remaining R33S, 9309, made its final trip on November 3, 2003, on the 7 service with ten R36 cars, marking the end of the Redbirds and non-stainless steel cars in the subway. Most R33S cars were converted to work motors in the early 2000s, and handle such tasks as providing traction for B-Division rail adhesion cars and refuse trains. The number "1"
460-534: The Coney Island Shop , except for one car (9306), which was not rebuilt and instead sent to the New York Transit Museum in 1976. However, they were not retrofitted with air conditioning system and instead retained their original Axiflow ceiling fans. For this reason, they were not used during the summer months due to poor air circulation or air flow and high humidity; the 7 train used 10 car trains when
506-687: The New York City Transit Authority . Though the R160 order replaced all New York City Subway-operated R44s from December 18, 2009 to September 16, 2010, because of structural integrity issues found on them, the Staten Island Railway fleet remains in operation and is to be replaced by the R211 order by 2024–2025. As of 2024, the R44s are the oldest active rolling stock within the NYCT system, following
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#1732852213297552-629: The New York Transit Museum . Since January 2022, the remaining R44s have been the oldest active rolling stock within the NYCT system at 51 years old, following the retirement of the R32s . Like the NYCT cars, the SIR R44s were originally planned to be retired by the R179 order; however, this plan was dropped. Proposals to overhaul and operate some R46s on the SIR to replace the R44s there surfaced instead; however, this plan
598-641: The R32 and R42 fleet, which were being replaced with the R160 order at the time; that same month, withdrawal of the NYCT R44 fleet from revenue service began, and retirement of the R32 and R42 fleet paused indefinitely. Initially the retired NYCT R44s were to be reefed. Cars 5342–5345, one of the sets that were brought in for inspection, were amongst the first to be completely stripped in preparation for disposition as artificial reefs since
644-613: The R33 cars, save for differently shaped side windows (three-piece curved windows on the R33S cars as opposed to three-sectioned rectangular windows on the R33 cars), and the fact that the R33S cars were single cars with a cab at both ends. The cars were built as single cars to make 11-car trains with the R36 cars for the 7 , which were built as married pairs. Although the R33S cars were later referred to as Redbirds ,
690-493: The "married pairs" of subway cars before them ( R26 to R42 , except R33S ). The NYCT cars were reassembled after overhaul into ABBA sets of four; A cars are evenly numbered with a full-width operator cabs at the number 1 end, while the B cars have odd numbers and no cabs at either end. The SIR cars were not reassembled after overhaul and remain as single units. The R44s were also factory equipped with automatic train operation (ATO) equipment, in anticipation of their use on
736-410: The NYCT cars, the SIR cars retained their original blue "M" MTA decals during their first overhaul. The cars have been undergoing further intermittent rounds of scheduled maintenance as their parts age over time. Even after their second overhaul, several SIR R44s were retired due to various mishaps. On December 26, 2008, car 402 was pulled from service after being badly damaged from accidentally hitting
782-484: The R44s were not delivered to those lines. At the end of 1969, bids were received and a contract was awarded for an order of 240 75-foot R44 subway cars, with an option for 60 additional cars at the end of 1969. After many months of exhaustive testing on the A , D , E , and F (one week on each service, starting December 16, 1971), as well as on the LIRR to test the cars' state-of-the-art electrical and mechanical systems,
828-457: The Staten Island Railway. The first R44 cars entered service on the subway on April 19, 1972, and on the Staten Island Railway on February 28, 1973. Various modifications were made over the years to the R44 fleet. The R44s set the world speed record for a subway car in 1972, reaching a top speed of 87.75 mph (141.22 km/h). In the early 1990s, the R44 cars were rebuilt by Morrison–Knudsen for
874-508: The active cars are expected to be phased out between 2024 and 2026. R33S (New York City Subway car) The R33S (also known as R33 World's Fair or R33WF ) was a New York City Subway car that was built by St. Louis Car Company in 1963 for the IRT A Division . They were purchased for service on the IRT Flushing Line ( 7 and <7> trains), which was the closest line to
920-521: The blind stated that the gaps in between R44 and R46 cars were dangerous, since the blind could mistake the spaces for doorways. Nine NYCT R44s were involved in various listed incidents that led to their premature retirements before the General Overhaul Program (GOH) program for the R44s commenced. These cars, along with car 385, were not overhauled during the GOH program; they were instead stored on
966-412: The cars still reached 77 mph (124 km/h). The cars were capable of attaining even higher speeds, but the length of the test track was insufficient to allow further acceleration. To ensure the subway could accommodate 75-foot (22.86 m) cars, three retired R1 cars (numbered 165, 192, and 211; renumbered XC675, XC575, and XC775 respectively) were repurposed and sent to various places around
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#17328522132971012-648: The cars were not used. In 1996, New York City Transit Authority announced their plan to phase out the Redbirds with the R142 and R142A fleets. While the Redbirds on the IRT Main Line were beginning to be retired starting in early 2001, the 7 service was still provided by R33S and R36 cars. In January 2002, a set of R62As arrived from the IRT mainline. As more R142s and R142As were delivered, R62As were gradually transferred from
1058-427: The cars were originally painted in a light turquoise blue and white upon delivery. This "Bluebird" paint color scheme was used until the mid-1970s when they were painted in the silver/blue MTA livery. Then, they were painted a full white (roof, bonnets, sides were all painted white) from 1981 to 1982 to combat graffiti ; since the white paint was a Teflon-based paint, the graffiti did not stick to it very well. The look
1104-437: The cars were painted red, leading to the nickname " Redbirds ". The R33S fleet was replaced in the early 2000s with the delivery of the R142 and R142A cars, with the last train of R33S and R36s running on November 3, 2003. After being retired, some R33S cars were preserved, but most were kept for work service; many of the work cars were scrapped in the 2010s. The R33S cars were numbered 9306–9345. The cars were very similar to
1150-511: The completion of the R44 order and the similar State of the Art Car , the St. Louis Car Company shut down operations. An eight-car train (328–335) was tested in 1973 with carpeting, and another (380–387) was tested with hydraulic brakes that were incompatible with the rest of the R44s' braking systems. In 1979, seven of the eight cars had these systems removed and replaced with conventional air brakes, while
1196-556: The decision was made to retire the fleet. However, after car 5344 presented a serious contamination hazard that was dangerous to the aquatic life in the ocean and would have proven too costly for artificial reef preparation for the NYCT R44s and the artificial reef program as a whole ending on April 2010 anyways, the plan to reef the NYCT R44s was ultimately cancelled in favor of simply scrapping them at Sims Mental Management. The NYCT R44s were gradually phased out until September 16, 2010, when
1242-567: The doorways by faux wood and glass panels. They were also the first car class delivered with crosswise seating since the R16 order from 1954. The walls were tan with "wallpaper" featuring the seals of New York State and New York City made from graffiti-resistant Formica plastics. The new interior decor was carried over to the R46 fleet. The R44 was the first car since the BMT Green Hornet to incorporate
1288-540: The first set of R44s was placed in service on the New York City Subway on the F on April 19, 1972, following a brief introductory ceremony attended by the Mayor of New York City John V. Lindsay , along with MTA Chairman William J. Ronan at Jamaica–179th Street station . The Staten Island R44s were delivered between January and April 1973. The first six Staten Island R44s went into service on February 28, 1973. With
1334-542: The last car (car 385) was permanently removed from service. GE cars 388–399 were not converted to Westcode SMEE braking system in 1984, and were eventually sent to the Staten Island Railway in 1985 to provide SIRTOA with some extra cars since ridership increased significantly in 1985, so their existing 52-car fleet would not be overly taxed. These 12 R44 cars were built identical to the SIRTOA's specification with GE propulsion instead of Westinghouse. In 1983, organizations for
1380-459: The last train made its final trips on the A and C . After retirement, the NYCT R44s were mothballed and placed into storage system-wide. From May 2012 until summer 2013, most of the NYCT R44s were scrapped at Sims Metal Management . Four cars, 5286–5289, were not scrapped and remain stored at Coney Island Yard. The only car not slated for disposal is car 5240 (originally 172), which has since been preserved and set aside for on-and-off display at
1426-473: The late 1990s, car 5284 was eventually repaired and returned to service, and the other damaged cars were stored out of service for parts until they were scrapped with the rest of the NYCT cars. All SIR cars were overhauled for a second time between 2007 and 2010 as a part of scheduled maintenance program. Several improvements included the repainting of the bulkheads, rebuilt trucks, new dark floors, newly repainted periwinkle bucket seats, and updated logos; unlike
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1472-452: The new Second Avenue Subway Line that was being built at the time. Since September 16, 2010, all NYCT R44 cars have been retired and replaced by the R160s due to structural integrity issues found on those cars, leaving the SIR as the sole operator of the R44. The R44 cars in service on SIR are maintained at Clifton Yard , with heavier maintenance being performed at Coney Island Yard . The R44
1518-447: The other being an in-house Coney Island Overhaul Shop rebuild, were brought in to the 207th Street Overhaul Shop for inspection; the inspection resulted in various structural integrity issues being discovered on all eight cars. As the R44s were originally planned to be retired by the R179 order, the decision was made in March 2010 to retire the R44s with the remaining R160 order in place of
1564-501: The repainting of the carbon steel blue stripes into silver gray stripes (most NYCT cars) or the replacement of the stripes with stainless steel panels (NYCT cars 5228–5229 and all SIR cars). The rollsigns on the sides were replaced with electronic LCD signs on the NYCT cars and were completely removed on the SIR cars. The SIR R44s, however, retained their original two-note warning tones from their entry into service, unlike their NYCT counterparts, which had their warning tones replaced with
1610-503: The retirement of the R32s . A total of 352 R44 cars were ordered; 300 cars for the New York City Subway (numbered 100–399, with 278 of the cars later renumbered 5202–5479) and 52 cars for the Staten Island Railway (also known as ME-2 , MU-2 , or MUE-2 cars, numbered 400–435 and even numbers between 436 and 466). They were the last subway cars built by the St. Louis Car Company prior to shutting down in 1974. The R44s originally came in singles, but needed each other to run, much like
1656-556: The same ones that are found on the R46s , R62s , R62As , R68s , and R68As . Even after the GOH program, several NYCT R44s were retired due to various mishaps. Cars 5319 and 5402 were damaged in separate fire-related incidents. Cars 5282–5285 were involved in a derailment north of 135th Street , resulting in the whole set being placed out of service. Car 5248 was taken out of service in 2004 due to cracked truck bolsters . Cars 5282 and 5319 were completely destroyed and subsequently scrapped in
1702-566: The same system, but fared much better than the NYCT cars. The rollsigns from eight R44s were removed and replaced by experimental flip-dot signs starting in 1988, the same year the New Technology Program began. These experimental flip-dots signs were replaced by electronic LCD signs on the sides and rollsigns on the front during the General Overhaul Program from 1991 to 1993. The R44s were designed to be automated and had
1748-527: The same title formed as a letter–number combination. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=R44&oldid=1120596488 " Category : Letter–number combination disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages R44 (New York City Subway car) The R44
1794-532: The subway and the Staten Island Railway. Cars XC675 and XC575 were cut in half and lengthened to 75 feet (22.86 m). As a result of the tests, it was determined that only minor changes to tunnels were needed to fit the 75-foot cars, and that particular segments on the BMT Eastern Division (the J/Z , L , and M ) would be too difficult to convert to allow 75-foot (22.86 m) cars to operate safely. As such,
1840-574: The system and stripped of parts until March 2001, when they were shipped off property and scrapped. During the General Overhaul Program, from 1991 to 1993, 342 R44s were rebuilt by the NYCT either at the 207th Street Yard in Manhattan or the Coney Island Complex in Brooklyn (cars 5342–5479 and all SIR cars) and by Morrison–Knudsen off NYCT premises (cars 5202–5341). Some improvements included
1886-431: The train's emergency braking system unexpectedly, which caused a situation known as stuck brakes. This P-Wire system, along with all of the automation systems (ATO) installed when these cars were built in 1972, was removed from the R44s beginning in 1984, and was replaced by a more conventional Westcode SMEE type braking system which made these cars much more reliable than with the originally installed system. The SIR cars had
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1932-408: Was abandoned for the famous Redbird style. The Redbirds were painted between 1984 and 1989 to a deep maroon red body, black front bonnets and anti-climbers , and a silver roof. The first R33S cars were placed in service on the 7 train on September 26, 1963. The cars were solely assigned to the 7 ( IRT Flushing Line ) and were based out of Corona Yard . The cars were rebuilt in-house in 1985 by
1978-450: Was also dropped. As such, the SIR R44s not written off received intermittent rounds of scheduled maintenance to extend their usefulness until retirement. Ultimately, 75 R211S cars have been ordered to replace the SIR R44s; these started entering service on October 8, 2024. The SIR R44s are being gradually phased out from mid-2023, with a handful of cars being retired and cannibalized for parts to keep other cars running. The remainder of
2024-456: Was placed before the former number (i.e. car 9345 became 19345) of some cars. The work cars are based out of various yards around the system and handle such tasks as providing traction for A-Division rail adhesion cars and refuse trains, and hauling cars during car moves between different subway yards. The cars that were not converted were 9306 and 9327, which were preserved as heritage cars after their retirement from revenue service, and 9321, which
2070-641: Was stripped and sunken as an artificial reef in 2001. Recently, the remaining R33S cars have been decommissioned as they experience structural or mechanical issues. Car 9339 was retired, stripped, and then sunken as an artificial reef in 2010 after it suffered fire damage that year. A handful of cars were replaced by reassigned R32 cars, stripped of parts to keep other IRT SMEE cars running, and then scrapped in 2013. Four cars were sidelined in 2017, after which they were sent into preservation. Currently, another handful of cars are being replaced by reassigned R42 cars. Six cars have been preserved: A detailed list of
2116-504: Was the first 75-foot (23 m) car for the New York City Subway. The cars were introduced under the idea that a train of eight 75-foot (22.86 m) cars would be more efficient than one of ten 60-foot (18.29 m) cars. Despite the increase in length, the R44s had eight pairs of doors per car (four on each side) like previous B Division cars. As a result, eight 75-foot (22.86 m) cars have only 64 (32 per side) pairs, whereas ten cars have 80 (40 per side). The reduced number of doors on
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