6000 series (CTA)

6000 series
6000 series
	6000-series work train cars at the California station on the O'Hare branch on May 19, 1985.
In service	1950–1992
Manufacturer	St. Louis Car Company
Constructed	1950–1959
Entered service	1950
Number built	720
Fleet numbers	6001–6720
Capacity	A unit 47 B unit 51
Operator(s)	Chicago Transit Authority, SEPTA
Specifications
Car length	48 ft (14.63 m)
Width	9 ft 4 in (2.84 m)
Height	11 ft 10 1⁄8 in (3.61 m)
Entry	level
Doors	4 (2 each side)
Maximum speed	50 mph (80 km/h)
Weight	9,999 lb (4,535 kg)
Traction motors	4 GE1220 or WH1432 per car
Power output	55 hp (0.041 MW) each; 220 hp (0.16 MW)total
Electric system(s)	Third rail
Current collection method	Contact shoe
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

Last updated May 27, 2019

The 6000 series is a series of Chicago "L" car built between 1950 and 1959 by the St. Louis Car Company. 720 cars were built. The last of 6000-series cars were retired on December 4, 1992. These cars were in service for 42 years.

The Chicago "L" is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs in the U.S. state of Illinois. Operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), it is the fourth-largest rapid transit system in the United States in terms of total route length, at 102.8 miles (165.4 km) long as of 2014, and the second-busiest rail mass transit system in the United States, after the New York City Subway. In 2016, the "L" had 1,492 rail cars, eight different routes, and 145 train stations; average weekday ridership was 759,866.

The St. Louis Car Company was a major United States manufacturer of railroad passenger cars, streetcars, trolleybuses and locomotives that existed from 1887 to 1974, based in St. Louis, Missouri.

Design

In 1947–1948 the CTA received four three-car articulated trainsets, 5001–5004, to test PCC technology in rapid transit use. Two sets of cars were built by Pullman, two by St. Louis Car, with equipment supplied by competing suppliers, in order to test them directly against each other. The 6000 series was designed with knowledge from the 5000 series.^[1]^[2]^[3]

The Pullman Car Company, founded by George Pullman, manufactured railroad cars in the mid-to-late 19th century through the first half of the 20th century, during the boom of railroads in the United States. Through rapid late nineteenth century development of mass production, and takeover of rivals, the company developed a virtual monopoly on production and ownership of sleeper cars. At its peak in the early 20th century, its cars accommodated 26 million people a year, and it in effect operated "the largest hotel in the world". Its production workers initially lived in a planned worker community named Pullman, Chicago. Pullman developed the sleeping car, which carried his name into the 1980s. Pullman did not just manufacture the cars, it also operated them on most of the railroads in the United States, paying railroad companies to couple the cars to trains. The labor union associated with the company, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, founded and organized by A. Philip Randolph, was one of the most powerful African-American political entities of the 20th century. The company also built thousands of streetcars and trolley buses for use in cities. Post World War II changes in automobile and airplane transport led to a steep decline in the company's fortunes. It folded in 1968.

Bodies

5000 series bodies had a curved profile previously used by North Shore Line and then Chicago, Aurora & Elgin cars which operated on the L. The floor width was the 8 ft 8 in (2.64 m) needed for platform clearance, then above the sides curved outward, so the car was wider at seat level. This profile was used, 6000 series cars were 8 in (20 cm) wider at the seats than the floor. Blinker doors which fold and open inward were also successful and were used in the 6000 series.

The Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad, also known as the North Shore Line, was an interurban that operated between the Chicago Loop and downtown Milwaukee. The 85-mile route of the North Shore Line utilized a combination of private rights-of-way and street running as well as trackage rights over the Chicago "L" network. In addition to operating passenger and freight trains, the company also provided streetcar and motor bus services throughout its history.

The Chicago Aurora and Elgin Railroad (CA&E), known colloquially as the "Roarin' Elgin" or the "Great Third Rail", was an interurban railroad that operated passenger and freight service on its line between Chicago and Aurora, Batavia, Geneva, St. Charles, and Elgin, Illinois. The railroad also operated a small branch to Mt. Carmel Cemetery in Hillside and owned a branch line to Westchester.

Articulation was not repeated; the 6000s were individual cars semi-permanently attached in pairs. The outside end of both cars had a cab, making a two-car double-ended arrangement. This has become the CTA standard.

St Louis built all 6000 series cars, as well as the 1-50 series, many with components salvaged from Pullman streetcars.^[4]

Driveline

The 5000s had modified Clark and St Louis trucks with 28 in (711 mm) wheels for speeds of x. The 6000s had more standard streetcar trucks, with 26 in (660 mm) wheels. These had a top speed of 50, which was adequate for CTA needs until the high-speed Skokie Swift shuttle started in 1964.

The first 200 cars were built with new components, including Clark B-2 trucks, the next 310 cars had Clark B-2s salvaged from Pullman streetcars, and the final 210, plus most of the similar 1-50 class, had St Louis B-3s salvaged from St Louis streetcars.

All cars had Westinghouse XDA1 controls. 6001–6488 had Westinghouse 1432 motors, all following cars had General Electric 1220 motors. Both type motors delivered 220 hp (160 kW). The exceptions are test cars 6127–6130, which had non-standard equipment and higher performance.^[5]^[6]

General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate incorporated in New York City and headquartered in Boston. As of 2018, the company operates through the following segments: aviation, healthcare, power, renewable energy, digital industry, additive manufacturing, venture capital and finance, lighting, and oil and gas.

Routes

The 6000 series became the standard of the system, and were used almost everywhere. In 1975 there were still over 700 6000s in service.

Initially, all of the first 130 6000s were assigned to the Logan Square line. The North-South and Ravenswood lines had 6000s in service in 1952 (with the 4000-series cars taking the 6000s' place on the Logan Square line); other lines (except the Lake Street line, presumably due to width clearance issues on the at-grade section of the line west of Laramie Avenue, which was also powered by overhead wire) received cars when they became available.

The Blue Line, also known as the O'Hare-Congress Line and the West-Northwest Line, is a 26.93-mile-long (43.34 km) Chicago "L" line which extends through the Loop from O'Hare International Airport at the far northwest end of the city, through downtown via the Milwaukee-Dearborn Subway and across the West Side to its southwest end at Forest Park, with a total of 33 stations. It is the CTA's second busiest rail line, with an average of 186,796 passengers boarding each weekday in September 2012.

The Red Line, sometimes known as the Howard-Dan Ryan Line or the North-South Line, is a rapid transit line in Chicago, run by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) as part of the Chicago "L" system. It is the busiest line on the "L" system, with an average of 251,813 passengers boarding each weekday in 2012. The route is 23.4 miles (37.7 km) long with a total of 33 stations, from Howard station in Rogers Park on the north side, through the State Street subway and to 95th/Dan Ryan in Roseland on the south side. Like the Blue Line, the Red Line runs 24 hours a day, 365 days a year; the CTA is one of only five rapid transit systems in the United States to do so. A proposed extension adding four new stations would extend the Red Line south from 95th/Dan Ryan to 130th Street.

Because of overhead wire, no 6000s were used on the Skokie or Evanston lines, except 6127–6130, which received trolley poles for express service on the Evanston line. (The western section of the Lake line was elevated in 1962; however, it remained equipped entirely with 4000s until the arrival of the 2000-series cars from Pullman-Standard in 1964.) Two of the routes that the 6000s were not used on were served by their single car variants, the 1-50 series. The Evanston line began to receive additional 6000s after it converted entirely from overhead wire to third rail in 1973.

When the Dan Ryan line was opened in 1969, newer cars were assigned there, but 6000s were sometimes used for special movements.^[7]

CTA sold some of the cars to SEPTA for use on the Norristown High Speed Line during the delay of the N-5 car delivery.

Related Research Articles

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The PCC is a streetcar (tram) design that was first built in the United States in the 1930s. The design proved successful in its native country, and after World War II it was licensed for use elsewhere in the world where PCC based cars were made. The PCC car has proved to be a long-lasting icon of streetcar design, and many are still in service around the world.

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The 5000 series is a series of Chicago "L" car built by Bombardier Transportation of Plattsburgh, New York. A $577 million order for 406 cars was placed in 2006. In July 2011, the CTA ordered 300 more cars for $331 million as an option on the first contract.

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1–50 series (CTA) class of Chicago Transit Authority cars

The 1–50 series was a series of Chicago "L" cars built by the St. Louis Car Company in 1959 and 1960. Unlike cars in the similar 6000 series, which were designed for married pair operation, the 1–50 series cars were double-ended to facilitate single car operation. There was a limited need for single cars, however, so cars 5, 7, 9, 11, 15, 19, 21, 23, 24, and 31 were later rebuilt as married units and were renumbered 61a/b–65a/b.

The State-of-the-Art Car (SOAC) was a heavy rail mass transit demonstrator vehicle produced for the United States Department of Transportation's Urban Mass Transportation Administration in the 1970s. It was intended to demonstrate the latest technologies to operating agencies and the riding public, and serve to promote existing and proposed transit lines. A single married pair was produced by the St. Louis Car Company in 1972. It operated in intermittent revenue service on six rapid transit systems in five United States cities between May 1974 and January 1977. Since 1989, the two cars have been on display at the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, Maine.

References

↑ Carlson, Stephen P.; Schneider III, Fred W. (1980). PCC-The Car that Fought Back. Interurban Press. p. 165. ISBN 0-916374-41-6.
↑ C.E.R.A. (1973). Chicago’s Rapid Transit v.1: Rolling Stock/1892-1947. Central Electric Railfans’ Association. pp. 215–227, 244–247. ISBN 0-915348-15-2.
↑ C.E.R.A. (1976). Chicago’s Rapid Transit v.2: Rolling Stock/1947–1976. Central Electric Railfans’ Association. p. 8. ISBN 0-915348-15-2.
↑ C.E.R.A. (1976), pp. 8–13, 21.
↑ Carlson (1980), pp. supplement.
↑ C.E.R.A. (1976), pp. 8–13, 174–175, 186, 189–190,.
↑ C.E.R.A. (1976), pp. 114–115.

"6000-series Cars". Chicago-L.org. Retrieved 2009-01-29.

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[1] Carlson, Stephen P.; Schneider III, Fred W. (1980). PCC-The Car that Fought Back. Interurban Press. p. 165. ISBN 0-916374-41-6.

[2] C.E.R.A. (1973). Chicago’s Rapid Transit v.1: Rolling Stock/1892-1947. Central Electric Railfans’ Association. pp. 215–227, 244–247. ISBN 0-915348-15-2.

[3] C.E.R.A. (1976). Chicago’s Rapid Transit v.2: Rolling Stock/1947–1976. Central Electric Railfans’ Association. p. 8. ISBN 0-915348-15-2.

[FOOTNOTEC.E.R.A.19768–13,_21-4] C.E.R.A. (1976), pp. 8–13, 21.

[FOOTNOTECarlson1980supplement-5] Carlson (1980), pp. supplement.

[FOOTNOTEC.E.R.A.19768–13,_174–175,_186,_189–190,-6] C.E.R.A. (1976), pp. 8–13, 174–175, 186, 189–190,.

[FOOTNOTEC.E.R.A.1976114–115-7] C.E.R.A. (1976), pp. 114–115.