Port Authority 4000-series PCC

Last updated
Port Authority 4000-series PCC
Pittsburgh PCC 4001.jpg
PCC 4001 as a static display in front of the South Hills Village depot, 2004.
Manufacturer St. Louis Car Company, rebuilt by Port Authority's South Hills Junction car shops
Constructed1949
Refurbished1981-1988
Number built12 + 4 partial rebuilds
Number preserved7
Number scrapped5
Fleet numbers4001-4012, 1713, 1735, 1737, 1765 [1]
Capacity46 (103 including standees) → 'crush'-load: 134 max.
Operators Port Authority of Allegheny County
Lines served Pittsburgh Light Rail
Specifications
Car length46.5 feet (14.2 m)
Width8 feet (2.44 m)
Height10 feet (3.05 m)
Doors2
Weight37,400 lb (16,964  kg) / 53,000 lb (24,040 kg)
(empty/full)
Traction system4 × 48 hp or 36 kW continuous, 4 × 55 hp or 41 kW one hour (rating)
Acceleration max. 4.3 MPHPS = 1.9 m/s²
Deceleration max. 9.0 MPHPS = 4.0 m/s² -- service 3.6 MPHPS = 1.6 m/s²
Electric system(s) 600 VDC Overhead
Current collector(s) Pantograph
Track gauge 5 ft 2+12 in (1,588 mm) Pennsylvania Trolley Gauge

The 4000-series PCC was a rebuilt PCC streetcar used by the Port Authority of Allegheny County. Originally designed by the Presidents' Conference Committee, a group of transit operators in the United States and Canada, the 4000's were a series of PCC cars completely rebuilt from cars built in 1949 by the St. Louis Car Company for Port Authority's predecessor, Pittsburgh Railways.

Contents

Background

In the early 1980s, the Pittsburgh Port Authority began its "Stage I" project to completely rebuild portions of its streetcar system into their new T system. This project consisted of a reconstructed Beechview-South Hills Village line supplemented by an order of 55 Siemens SD-400 light rail cars. However, this project would only reconstruct roughly fifty-five percent of the existing system, with the Overbrook-Library and Drake lines earmarked in the "Stage II" plan, to be rebuilt at a later date as funding became available. Until such time, the "Stage II" lines would not be able to accommodate the new, heavier, and wider rail cars due to their age and condition, so the Authority needed to continue to operate their aging PCC fleet.

The solution was a fleet of completely rebuilt PCC's that could complement the new LRVs by operating on portions of the system that could not yet accommodate the larger, heavier cars, as well as having new components that extended their service lives until such time that their lines could be rebuilt and replacements bought.

Originally, the Authority planned to overhaul forty-five of their 1700-series PCC's. However, budgetary constraints and technical difficulties resulted in only sixteen cars being rebuilt. Of the sixteen, only twelve cars received the complete overhaul, while four were only partially rebuilt. These four, affectionately referred to as "Super 17's" by many, received the same mechanical and electrical improvements, seats, body work, and paint scheme as the remaining twelve, but retained several of their 1949 attributes, including original interior and exterior lighting, all-steel body panels, and operator's controls, as well as retaining their original numbers. [2] The 4000-series cars that received the complete overhaul were essentially completely new vehicles built within the old car's body. All new propulsion and braking systems had been installed, as well as new interiors with improved lighting. Some cars were given two pantographs, where the front one was outfitted with a de-icing apparatus intended to help remove sleet from the overhead wires. As planned, nearly all cars would be air-conditioned, but with the aforementioned budget issues, only one car, number 4006, was fitted with an air-conditioning system. [3]

Service

The 4000 series was intended as an interim solution for the Authority's unrebuilt lines, which could not accommodate the newer, heavier railcars. As such, they were assigned to the 47D Drake via Overbrook, 47L Library via Overbrook, and 47S South Hills Village via Overbrook lines, as well as the 47 Shannon line, all trans-versing the Overbrook corridor. [4] In 1988, Port Authority retired all of its remaining unrebuilt PCC's due to safety concerns, leaving only the twelve 4000 PCC's and four "Super 17's" available to serve the Overbrook, Library, and Drake lines, thus necessitating the use of LRV's on at least one of these lines to maintain service. Of the three, the Library line was found to be the best suited to accommodate the larger LRV's with only minor modifications, and the route was modified and redesignated as the "42L Library via Beechview" (as the Overbrook line could not accommodate the LRV's) in December, 1988, and the PCC's were relegated to just the 47D,S, and 47 lines.

Unlike the LRV's which had both high and low level doors, the PCC's had only low level doors and were limited to street level boarding. As a result, all major stations on portions of the system that were shared by PCC's and LRV's (these being South Hills Village, Washington Junction, Castle Shannon, South Hills Junction, and all stops north of the Mount Washington Transit Tunnel) had both high and low platforms to accommodate both types of cars.

PCC 4001 47D Drake shuttle trolley close up. Drake shuttle.jpg
PCC 4001 47D Drake shuttle trolley close up.

In 1993, the Overbrook Line was shut down between Castle Shannon and South Hills Junction due to the deteriorated conditions of the track, bridges, walls, and other infrastructure. With that, routes 47 and 47S were suspended, and the 47D was reduced to a short shuttle between Drake and Castle Shannon, where riders would be required to transfer to route 42S, 42L, or a bus to continue to downtown. [5]

In 1999, the Drake shuttle was shut down, and the remaining PCC's were retired.

Roster

A roster of Pittsburgh's PCC streetcars [6]
1981former numberrenumbered to / notes
400017024012 in 1985
40011720
40021740
40031731
40041739
40051729[assumed due to 4007 reference]
40061767
40071719 [7]
40081709
40091700
40101757
40111733
40124000
1987
40131762

Preserved examples

Car #4004 was donated to the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum where it has become part of a collection of historic streetcars and trolleys from all across the United States and other nations. [8] San Francisco MUNI acquired #4008 and #4009 in an internet auction in 2002 [9] for $5000 each. However, the agency expressed little interest in restoring the cars, as they differed significantly from other MUNI PCCs, and would require re-gauging (as San Francisco cars are Standard Gauge) as well as modifications for ADA accessibility. [10] By 2018, these factors, combined with the poor condition of the cars, having been stored outdoors for nearly two decades, ultimately prompted Muni to sell the two for scrap, and the cars were cut up the following year. [11] Muni instead repainted their PCC no. 1062, originally Philadelphia Transportation Company (later SEPTA) no. 2101, in Pittsburgh Railways Company livery to represent the city. [12] [13] The disposition of the remainder are as follows:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashmont–Mattapan High-Speed Line</span> Light rail line in Boston and Milton, Massachusetts

The Ashmont–Mattapan High-Speed Line, commonly referred to as the Mattapan Trolley, is a partially grade-separated light rail line which forms part of the MBTA's Red Line rapid transit line. The line, which runs through Boston and Milton, Massachusetts, opened on August 26, 1929, as a conversion of a former commuter rail line. It exclusively uses PCC streetcars built in the 1940s. Passengers must transfer at Ashmont to access the rest of the Red Line, which uses heavy rail metro rolling stock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F Market & Wharves</span> San Francisco heritage streetcar line

The F Market & Wharves line is one of several light rail lines in San Francisco, California. Unlike most other lines in the system, the F line runs as a heritage streetcar service, almost exclusively using historic equipment both from San Francisco's retired fleet as well as from cities around the world. While the F line is operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni), its operation is supported by Market Street Railway, a nonprofit organization of streetcar enthusiasts which raises funds and helps to restore vintage streetcars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SEPTA subway–surface trolley lines</span> Philadelphia trolley lines

The SEPTA subway–surface trolley lines are a collection of five SEPTA trolley lines that operate on street-level tracks in West Philadelphia and Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and also underneath Market Street in Philadelphia's Center City. The lines, Routes 10, 11, 13, 34, and 36, collectively operate on about 39.6 miles (63.7 km) of route.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">US Standard Light Rail Vehicle</span> Light Rail Vehicle

The US Standard Light Rail Vehicle (SLRV) was a light rail vehicle (LRV) built by Boeing Vertol in the 1970s. The Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA) of the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT) promoted it as a standardized vehicle for U.S. cities. Part of a series of defense conversion projects in the waning days of the Vietnam War, the SLRV was seen as both a replacement for older PCC streetcars in many cities and as a catalyst for cities to construct new light rail systems. The US SLRV was marketed as and is popularly known as the Boeing LRV or SLRV, and should not be confused with their prior lunar roving vehicles for NASA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pittsburgh Railways</span>

Pittsburgh Railways was one of the predecessors of Pittsburgh Regional Transit. It had 666 PCC cars, the third largest fleet in North America. It had 68 streetcar routes, of which only three are used by the Port Authority as light rail routes. With the Port Authority's Transit Development Plan, many route names will be changed to its original, such as the 41D Brookline becoming the 39 Brookline. Many of the streetcar routes have been remembered in the route names of many Port Authority buses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pennsylvania Trolley Museum</span> Railway museum in Washington, Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Trolley Museum is a museum in Washington, Pennsylvania, dedicated to the operation and preservation of streetcars and trolleys. The museum primarily contains historic trolleys from Pennsylvania, but its collection includes examples from nearby Toledo, New Orleans, and even an open-sided car from Brazil. Many have been painstakingly restored to operating condition. Other unique cars either awaiting restoration or that are incompatible with the 5' 2-1/2" Pennsylvania trolley gauge track are on display in a massive trolley display building. Notable examples of static display include a J.G. Brill “Brilliner” car, locomotives, and a horse car from the early days of Pittsburgh’s public transit systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pittsburgh Light Rail</span> Light rail system in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Pittsburgh Light Rail is a 26.2-mile (42.2 km) light rail system in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and surrounding suburbs. It operates as a deep-level subway in Downtown Pittsburgh, but runs mostly at-grade in the suburbs south of the city. The system is largely linear in a north-south direction, with one terminus near Pittsburgh's central business district and two termini in the South Hills. The system is owned and operated by Pittsburgh Regional Transit. The T is one of the surviving first-generation streetcar systems in North America, with the oldest portions of the network dating back to 1903 and the Pittsburgh Railways. It is also one of only three light rail systems in the United States that continues to use the broad 5 ft 2+12 in Pennsylvania Trolley Gauge on its lines instead of the 4 ft 8+12 instandard gauge. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 3,417,100.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red Line (Pittsburgh)</span> Light rail line in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Red Line is a line on the Pittsburgh Light Rail system that runs between South Hills Village and Downtown Pittsburgh via the Beechview neighborhood. The companion route, the Blue Line, branches off north of Martin Villa – which closed in 2012 – and runs through Overbrook. In March 2007, the closure of the Palm Garden Bridge for refurbishment suspended the Red Line for five months; it resumed service in September.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Hills Junction station</span>

South Hills Junction station is a station on Pittsburgh Regional Transit's light rail network. This station served as the original "merge point" of the inbound Beechview and Overbrook branches of the light rail system, just before the run under Mount Washington through the Mount Washington Transit Tunnel and into downtown Pittsburgh. In 1993 the Overbrook (Blue) Line was shut down for complete reconstruction to serve the modern-day light rail cars. During construction, it was found that a segment of track between the Boggs Ave. stop and South Hills Junction was too narrow for the larger vehicles; this was bypassed with two wide-curved rail ramps built between the Beechview (Red) Line's Palm Garden stop and South Hills Junction where the two branches now merge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steel Plaza station</span> Light rail station in Pittsburgh, PA

Steel Plaza station is a station on the Pittsburgh Regional Transit's light rail network, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It serves the city's Downtown district and is located at the intersection of Grant Street and Oliver Avenue. The station consists of an outbound (southbound) side platform and an inbound island platform, with one track for trains to Wood Street and the other for a disused branch line to Union Station. The station has rights to 4.25 acres underground Mellon Green and is accessible by means of a tunnel that connects BNY Mellon Center and the US Steel Tower. It is also the closest station to PPG Paints Arena and the primary station used for the Pittsburgh Penguins' home games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Watertown Yard</span> Bus terminal in Massachusetts, US

Watertown Carhouse is a bus maintenance facility and former streetcar carhouse located in the southern section of Watertown, Massachusetts, across the Charles River from Watertown Square. As Watertown Yard, the site also serves as a bus depot serving local and express routes 52, 57, 59, and 504, with additional connections available at Watertown Square station on the opposite end of the Watertown Bridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">47D Drake</span> Former streetcar line in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States

The 47D Drake was a PCC trolley line that was part of the Pittsburgh Light Rail system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Municipal Railway fleet</span> LRV and Bus Fleet of the San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni)

With five different modes of transport, the San Francisco Municipal Railway runs one of the most diverse fleets of vehicles in the United States. Roughly 550 diesel-electric hybrid buses, 300 electric trolleybuses, 250 modern light rail vehicles, 50 historic streetcars and 40 cable cars see active duty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Washington Transit Tunnel</span>

Mount Washington Transit Tunnel is an important public transportation link in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The 3,492-foot (1,064 m) tunnel connects Station Square to South Hills Junction, and is used only by Pittsburgh Light Rail cars and buses of the Port Authority of Allegheny County. The tunnel changes 204.54 feet in elevation from its north portal at 750.36 feet above sea level to its south portal at 954.90 feet above sea level, resulting in a grade of 5.86%. With the elimination of bus service in the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel in 2019, the Mount Washington Transit Tunnel is the only tunnel in the United States shared by bus and rail services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Park station (Pittsburgh Regional Transit)</span>

South Park is a station on the Port Authority of Allegheny County's light rail network, located in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. The street level stop is designed as a small commuter stop, serving area residents who walk to the train so they can be taken toward Downtown Pittsburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SEPTA PCC III</span> Rebuilt streetcar

The PCC III is a series of upgraded PCC streetcars used by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for its Route 15.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue Line (Pittsburgh)</span> Light rail line in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Blue Line is a Pittsburgh Light Rail line that runs between Downtown Pittsburgh via the Overbrook neighborhood to South Hills Village.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Historic Trolley Festival</span> Discontinued streetcar service in San Francisco

The San Francisco Historic Trolley Festival was a heritage streetcar service along Market Street in San Francisco, California, United States. It used a variety of vintage streetcars and operated five to seven days a week, primarily in summer months, between 1983 and 1987. Sponsored by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway, it was the predecessor of the F Market & Wharves heritage streetcar line that opened in 1995. It used historic streetcars from several different countries, as well as a number of preserved San Francisco cars. The impetus behind the Trolley Festival was that the city's famed cable car system, one of its biggest tourist attractions, was scheduled to be closed for more than a year and a half for renovation, starting in September 1982. The Trolley Festival was conceived as a temporary substitute tourist attraction during the cable car system's closure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silver Line (Pittsburgh)</span> Light rail line in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Silver Line is a line on the Pittsburgh Light Rail system that runs between Downtown Pittsburgh through the Overbrook neighborhood to Library. It is the renamed service for the former Blue Line –Library branch.

References

  1. http://www.rapidtransit-press.com/131-1.pdf
  2. Smith, Harold A. (1992). Touring Pittsburgh by Trolley: A Pictorial Review of the Early Sixties. New York: Quadrant Press, Inc. ISBN   0-915276-48-8.
  3. The 80's at PAT. Antique Motor Coach Association of Pennsylvania. Retrieved May 26, 2009.
  4. "Pittsburghtransit.info - The Routes - PCC Operation". 28 August 2005. Retrieved 9 August 2009.
  5. "Pittsburgh Railways Online - A Trolley Car Tragedy - 1950's". February 18, 2002. Retrieved November 16, 2009.
  6. "Pittsburghtransit.org".
  7. Hicks, Frank (October 24, 2017). "Preserved Traction: Pittsburgh PCC numbering history corrected".
  8. "Pennsylvania Trolley Museum - Port Authority Transit Car #4004". October 17, 2007. Retrieved October 9, 2010.
  9. Laubscher, Rick (2007). "Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: PCC past-time" . Retrieved 2008-03-11.
  10. Rick Laubscher (August 1, 2008). "Market Street Railway - Sixteen PCCs Out for Renovation Bids" . Retrieved August 8, 2009.
  11. https://www.sfmta.com/sites/default/files/reports-and-documents/2018/06/6-19-18_item_10.1_disposal_of_street_cars_resolution.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  12. "Pittsburgh in Nevada, Inbound". Market Street Railway. 24 June 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  13. "Perfect November Saturday on the Waterfront". Market Street Railway. 18 November 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  14. "EVENTS".
  15. "Mike Samolovitch Collection_0020 - PCC 4006". 27 May 2009. Retrieved 8 August 2009.
  16. "Preserved Traction: A Terrible Acquisition". 31 May 2023.
  17. "Pennsylvania Trolley Museum acquires Terrible Trolley - CBS Pittsburgh". CBS News .