In service 2013-present | Constructed 2011–2016 | |
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Manufacturer Kawasaki Rail Car Company Built at Yonkers, New York, US and
Kobe, Hyōgo, JP Family name R100-R199 R type contract series, NTT (new technology train) Entered service November 9, 2013 (under CAP)
December 15, 2013 | ||
The R188 is an A Division new technology (NTT) car constructed by the Kawasaki Heavy Industries Rolling Stock Company for the New York City Subway. The MTA is displacing the R62As from the 7 <7> services with these cars to automate the IRT Flushing Line. The R188 is part of both the fourth and fifth generation of New York City Subway A Division rolling stock. 380 R142As are converted to R188s, along with deliveries of 126 new R188 cars. The R188s comprise fleet numbers #7211-7590 and #7811-7936.
Contents
In addition to providing six extra 11-car trains for the 7 Subway Extension, the R188s will allow twenty R62A cars to be freed up for the other IRT services. The R188s replacing the R62As allowed the 6 to have more R62As and giving more R142As for the R188s.
Timeline and composition of trainsets
At the time that the R188 order was placed, forty R62A 11-car trainsets were assigned to the 7 service. The R188 order originally consisted of 186 new cars, as well as 131 converted R142A cars compatible with communication-based train control (CBTC) and an additional 189 R142A conversion kits for MTA, totaling a possible 506 cars, or in other words, 46 11-car trains. Of these 506 cars, 230 are arranged in 5-car sets while the remaining 276 are arranged in 6-car sets. Six extra R188 trainsets were ordered in conjunction with CBTC installation and 7 Subway Extension. The trains are configured so that the five-car consist on each train is located on the Manhattan-bound end and the six-car consist is located on the Main Street-bound end, due to the position of conductor's boards on platforms along the 7 route.
According to the 2010–2014 capital plan, 146 new cars were to be purchased. Of these new cars, 110 cars would go to make up 10 new 11-car trains, while the remaining 36 cars were to be "C" cars that would go to expanding 36 CBTC upgraded R142A 5-car sets (360 existing cars) to 6-car length. The original planned total of 46 11-car trains (506 cars) would still result from this order.
In the latest revision, however, only 88 new cars were to be purchased to form 8 new 11-car trains, with 38 "C" cars, rather than ten 11-car trains. Likewise, the number of conversion cars was altered to 370. This change was made with the knowledge that only two ten-car R62A growth sets for the mainline IRT would be needed, as opposed to the projected four sets, and thus the MTA and Kawasaki opted to convert two additional R142A train sets in place of manufacturing two new sets. The MTA also decided to have Kawasaki perform all of the conversions at the Yonkers plant instead of 207th Street Shop as part of that contract modification.
Contract, delivery, and revenue service
The R188 contract was awarded in spring 2010 to Kawasaki Heavy Industries, who won by default since only two manufacturers qualified and Bombardier Transportation opted not to bid on the contract citing the small order and large requirement for engineering resources. The contract was specified at $87,094,272 for the base order, which consisted of 33 cars (23 new cars and 10 conversions), and $384,315,168 for the option order, which consisted of 473 cars (123 new cars, and 350 conversions) for a total price of $471,409,440.
According to a February 2012 update, the MTA had expected to have 8 conversion sets in service by the time that the 7 Subway Extension is opened for revenue service. In addition, the breakdown of the trainsets has been disclosed. Operationally, the R188s are coupled as such: A-C-B-B-A+A-B-B-B-C-A; where dashes signify link bars and the addition sign denotes couplers. Thirty-eight R142A B cars, therefore, will be converted into R188 "C" cars, in addition to the 38 deliveries of new "C" cars (not including the "C" cars in the eight new 11-car sets).
The 10 converted R142A cars from the base order (#7211-7220) were completed in December 2011 at Kawasaki's Yonkers facility, and were delivered for testing on the Flushing line in 2012. The 23 new cars from the base order (two eleven-car sets, #7811-7832, and one conversion set "C" car, #7899) were completed in mid-2012, delivered in November 2013, and entered service in December 2013. The 66 new option cars (#7833-7898) were also completed in mid-2012 and have been delivered, while the remaining 37 new cars and the 370 conversions were set to be converted and delivered from February 2014 until the 4th quarter of 2015.
On November 9, 2013, the first R188 train, consisting of cars #7811-7821, were placed in service on the 7 train as part of its 30-day revenue acceptance test. After successful completion, it entered revenue service by December 15, 2013. By July 2014, the delivery schedule had slipped by about 6–7 months. However, delivery of the cars sped up; all remaining R188 cars were expected to be delivered by the end of July 2016, but the last R188 cars were delivered in late June 2016.
Features
The R188s are equipped with the latest control system, HVAC, and public address system to guarantee the utmost safety and passenger comfort. They are similar to the R142As, but can only be compatible with the converted R142As that feature CBTC.
Like the R142, R142A, and R143, the R188s feature the electronic strip map with all stops on the 7 route with an indicator that can be set to either a local or express train.
In June 2016, one set of R188s was retrofitted with green circle/red diamond LED signs on its destination signs, similar to those on the R62As originally used on the 7 and currently on the 6. This is presumably due to the fact that passengers cannot visually differentiate between an express train and local train, despite the announcements and digital signage. It is unknown if the remainder of the R188 fleet will be retrofitted with this feature.