Вагоны метро Нью-Йорка R36: История и вынос из эксплуатации

Retired class of New York City Subway car

The R36 was a New York City Subway car model built by the St. Louis Car Company from 1963 to 1964. The cars are a "follow up" or supplemental stock to the A Division's R33s, which some of the cars closely resemble. A total of 424 cars were built, arranged in pairs. The order includes World's Fair cars comprising 390 cars, and Main Line cars comprising 34 cars. The R36s entered service on October 24, 1963, and were overhauled in the mid 1980s. They were retired by 2003 with the delivery of the R142 and R142A cars. While most cars were reefed, some have been preserved, and others have been retained for other purposes.

The R36s were numbered 9346–9769. They were the last entirely LAHT bodied (non stainless steel) cars built for the New York City Subway. Cars 9346–9523 and 9558–9769 were specifically purchased for service on the IRT Flushing Line ( and trains), which was the closest line to the 1964 New York World's Fair. The cars were also referred to as "World's Fair" cars, or R36WFs (R36 World's Fair), and featured three piece curved "picture" windows, unlike other IRT cars at the time. While in regular service, five two car consists of these cars were coupled to one single R33S car to make 11 car trains for the and routes. Cars 9524–9557 were purchased for service on all other IRT routes. The cars were also referred to as "Main Line" cars, or R36MLs (R36 Main Line) to distinguish them from the "World's Fair" cars. They were built from unfinished car body shells of the R33 order, and therefore featured sported drop sash side windows. Although the R36s were later referred to as Redbirds, the cars were originally painted in different schemes when they were delivered. The "World's Fair" cars were painted in a light blue turquoise "Bluebird" scheme, while the "Main Line" cars were painted bright red like the R33s. These color schemes were used until 1977, when the cars were painted in the silver/blue MTA livery. Then, they were painted in a full white (roof, bonnets, and sides were all painted white) "anti graffiti" scheme 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 was abandoned for the famous "Redbird" style, which was applied onto the cars when they were rebuilt.

In 1962, the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) ordered 430 cars for the train. This route would run to the World's Fair grounds in Flushing Meadows in Queens. The first 40 cars were singles (R33S), with the rest being R36 cars; single cars were needed since the service runs 11 car trains, and R36 cars were built only in pairs. The first R36 cars ("World's Fair" cars 9558–9561) arrived in fall 1963, shortly after the R33S cars began arriving in September that year. The first train of R33S and "World's Fair" R36 cars was placed in service on the route on October 24, 1963. With the fair opening approaching on April 12, 1964, "World's Fair" R36 cars were built and delivered in larger quantities that fall. More "World's Fair" cars arrived throughout 1964, enough to displace the R12s, R14s, and R15s from the train by the close of 1964. The "Main Line" R36s entered service on the almost a year later, on July 24, 1964. The cars were first assigned to the , , and until February 16, 1966, when they were moved to the .

The "Main Line" R36s stayed on the until October 1968, when cars 9530–9539 were moved to the and When the GE R12s were sent to the (Third Avenue elevated line) in August 1969, the remaining cars assigned to the were moved to the and to join the rest of the "Main Line" cars assigned there. until July 2001, "World's Fair" cars 9478–9523 usually ran on the train based at Westchester Yard in the Bronx. Previously, some Westinghouse equipped cars had been assigned to the and trains in the late 1960s–early 1980s. when they were returned to the .

In 1996, the New York City Transit Authority announced their plans to phase out the Redbirds with the R142 and R142A fleets. From February 2001 to July 2001, This pair was restored to operational status and made its first run on the Train of Many Colors in November 2023. "World's Fair" pair 9586–9587 – also preserved by the New York Transit Museum in Brooklyn. These cars were stored for many years until being moved to the Concourse Yard in summer 2013. In September 2013, the pair was moved to 207th Street Yard and restored to operating status. The cars were initially displayed at the transit museum and finally participated on their first fan trip on June 8, 2014, on the route, as part of the Train of Many Colors. "World's Fair" pairs 9582–9583 and 9584–9585 also remain on MTA property. They were transferred to the Unionport Yard along with pair 9586–9587. Pair 9582–9583 was found to have structural issues and was sidelined, while pair 9584–9585 was used on the rail adhesion train until 2019. Plans are unknown for these cars. In addition to these cars, other cars were also stored around the system. "World's Fair" pair 9400–9401 was stored at the Corona Yard for preservation; however, the cars were never used and were scrapped on October 7, 2013. "World's Fair" pair 9564–9565 was set aside and transferred to Coney Island Yard in December 2004; car 9564 was planned to be repurposed into a visitor center at Queens Borough Hall in Kew Gardens, Queens, and the car 9565 was planned to be preserved in a museum in West Babylon, New York. However, R33 9075 was used at Queens Borough Hall instead of 9564, and 9565 never made it to the proposed museum; the cars were subsequently reefed in 2008. "World's Fair" pair 9588–9589 was stored at the Concourse Yard until 2008, when the pair was reefed.

Eight WH powered "World's Fair" cars (9356–57, 9360–61, 9394–95, 9412–13) and two GE powered cars (9712–13), in addition to one R33S (9327), were wrapped and painted in New York Mets colors on October 24, 2000, prior to Game 3 of the 2000 World Series between the Yankees and Mets. In addition, the "World's Fair" cars have made cameo roles in various TV shows and movies. Nicolas Cage rides a train of "World's Fair" R36s in It Could Happen to You (1994). In the 1988 movie Cocktail, Tom Cruise gets off car 9700 at Vernon Boulevard–Jackson Avenue station.