[PRCo] Re: PCCs in Operation

[Fred Schneider]

The Boston cars are not running at this moment because the Mattapan -  
Ashmont line is temporarily out of service while the Ashmont subway  
station is rebuilt.   Those cars are, as Russ Jackson is his own  
whimsical manner described them, PCC version D for degraded.   The  
field shunts have been removed from the acceleration mode therefore  
they will run no faster than 25 mph and therefore they do not meet  
PCC specifications.  I'm not about to get into a contest over what is  
or what is not a PCC any longer.

Kenosha has five cars from Toronto, as Ken wrote, and I don't think  
that they have been mechanically altered in any way that would change  
the performance specification.

Toronto has one or two in charter service but not in normal scheduled  
service.

Philadelphia had a group of cars that from outward appearances look  
like a PCC but have nothing on them, to the best of my knowledge,  
that was manufactured according to PCC patents.  The trucks are  
totally new and are identical to those on the New Orleans red cars.    
The control package is also totally new and electronic, not a  
resistance control scheme.   I would be hard pressed to call them PCC  
cars.   There may still be some PCC cars in storage that have not  
been sold off or rebuilt by SEPTA.

New Jersey Transit still has a small fleet of cars in storage for  
future use, I think in Bayonne.

And Holland would have to fill in the details on the San Francisco  
fleet.   I know there is one Pittsburgh 4000 out there.   There are  
many of the rebuilt SEPTA cars that had gone first through the 1981  
General Overhaul Program, which removed the field shunting in  
acceleration and also screwed up the braking response.    Like the  
Boston cars, they too no longer meet TRC / PCC specifications but you  
would have a hard time explaining to a non technical mind that they  
are not true PCCs.   I think there are also a few of the original  
Muni Torpedos still running, and they probably are as close to  
original as you get today for a car that is approaching 50 years old.


On Jan 16, 2007, at 11:50 AM, Ken & Tracie wrote:

> Boston is running PCCs on the Mattapan-Ashmont line and San  
> Francisco has
> PCCs running their F line. Kenosha, Wisconsin has a fleet of five  
> running on
> their line, too.
>
> Fred the Third mentioned some wiring or mechanical changes to the  
> Boston
> cars which technically alters them from true PCC status and I've  
> read that
> the Philadelphia cars are essentially new non-PCC cars using  
> refurbished PCC
> bodies.
>
> The Kenosha cars are ex-Toronto PCC cars using ex-CTA standard  
> gauge trucks.
>
> Corrections and additions to what I typed above are requested.
>
> K.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <mtoytrain at bellsouth.net>
> To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, January 16, 2007 8:44 AM
> Subject: [PRCo] Re: PCCs in Operation
>
>
>> Knowing Philadelphia has refurbished PCCs running are there any  
>> other US
>> Cities running PCCs
>> cars at this time??.  I thought Boston was, but was told differently.
>> Also a number of cities,  Tampa, Charlotte Memphis and others have  
>> opened
>> new  lines what type of cars are they running?  New or refurbished?
>>
>> Also being a member of PTM,  is there any plans to extend the  
>> trackage or
>> right of way or is the
>> basic track layout  going to be maintained:
>>
>> Jerry Matsick
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>