The Bluebird, formally dubbed Compartment Car by its purchaser, the BMT, was an advanced design PCC subway and elevated railway car used on the New York City subway system from 1939 to 1962. A 1914 map showing what was at the time the proposed expansion for the BRT. The only major differences from what was built is that a new 60th Street Tunnel was used rather than the Queensboro Bridge, the Manhattan-side Brooklyn Bridge connection was never built, and several lines ended... A Twin Cities Rapid Transit PCC streetcar in museum operation. ... This article describes subways as mass transit lines. ... Subway redirects here; for the restaurant named Subway, see Subway (restaurant). ... South Ferry station 125th Street station The New York City Subway is a large rapid transit system in New York City, New York, United States. ... 1939 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Design theory

A single Bluebird unit, numbered 8000, was purchased by the BMT as a prototype for a planned fleet of equipment that could operate universally on both standard subway lines and older elevated lines.

The articulated unit, 80 feet long, 10 feet wide and 12 feet high, consisted of three compartments placed on four trucks, connected by fully-enclosed, hinged passageways. The Bluebird was an example of Art Deco industrial design, presenting a clean but mildly streamlined appearance. Articulation may refer to several topics: In speech, linguistics, and communication: Topic-focus articulation Articulation score Place of articulation Manner of articulation In music: Musical articulations (staccato, legato, etc) In education: Articulation (education) In sociology: Articulation (sociology) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that... In heraldry, a compartment is a design placed under the shield, usually rocks, a grassy mount, or some sort of other landscape upon which the supporters are depicted as standing (a compartment without supporters is possible but practically unknown, with the exception of South Australia[1]). It is sometimes said... Asheville City Hall. ... Industrial Design is an applied art whereby the aesthetics and usability of products may be improved. ...

The BMT expected the Bluebird to preserve its investment in its elevated railway lines without expensive upgrading for heavier subway equipment, while attracting passengers with its interior comforts. Tests demonstrated that its greatly improved operating parameters could have cut significant time from existing elevated train schedules.

Diversified use

The Bluebird was designed during the Great Depression as a fast, physically attractive and comfortable mass transit vehicle that would attract passengers, while instituting significant economies in production, operation, and maintenance. --209. ... In the United States of America, transit describes local area common carrier passenger transportation configured to provide scheduled service on fixed routes on a non-reservation basis. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

The car's lightweight body and running gear, combined with its short truckbase and segmented body, permitted it to operate on the oldest elevated structures, with their light loading tolerance and sharp curves, as well as in tunnel sections, where policy prohibited the use of the wooden cars typically used on elevateds. An underground pedestrian tunnel between buildings at MIT. Note the utility pipes running along the ceiling. ... BU cars is the generic term for BRT elevated gate cars used on predecessor lines of the New York City Subway system. ...

Technology

Bluebirds were the first PCC rapid transit cars utilizing the advanced running gear originally created for new-design streetcars. In addition to quick acceleration and braking, use of PCC technology meant that Bluebirds could share a significant parts and maintenance base with the Brooklyn transit company's planned PCC trolley fleet, achieving economies of scale and efficiency. a historic postcard showing electric trolley-powered streetcars in Richmond, Virginia, where Frank J. Sprague successfully demonstrated his new system on the hills in 1888 A streetcar is a railway vehicle designed to carry passengers on tracks, usually laid in city streets. ... For other meanings, see Brooklyn (disambiguation). ... This article refers to the mass transit vehicle. ...

The Bluebirds were built by Clark Equipment Company, maker of PCC running gear. They were the only rapid transit cars ever built by Clark. Rapid transit describes a type of urban rail transportation, generally including subway and elevated lines in the U.S., Metros in most other countries, and U-Bahnen in Germany. ...

Fleet

Satisfied with tests on #8000, the BMT placed an order for an additional 50 units, which could replace 80 old elevated cars; however, the order was cancelled after the City of New York purchased the BMT in June 1940. The City's Board of Transportation, already the operator of the Independent Subway System, was one of the most conservative transit operators in the U.S., and had no interest in the former BMT's aggressive technology planning.-1... June is the sixth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of four with the length of 30 days. ... 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Independent Subway System (IND, formerly ISS), and even earlier the Independent City-Owned Subway System (ICOS) or Independent City-Owned Rapid Transit Railroad was one of the three systems that is now part of the New York City Subway. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America, the States, or (archaically) Columbia—is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... Technology ( Gr. ...

Under NYC ownership

Five Bluebirds were in the process of construction at the time of cancellation, and the City decided to accept these, numbering them 8001-8005. They couldn't interoperate with #8000, which had no couplers or multiple unit trainline connections. The single unit 8000 spent much of its service life on the BMT Franklin Avenue Line shuttle, home of many pieces of orphaned equipment, while the train of Bluebirds operated regularly on the BMT Canarsie Line. A multiple unit is a passenger train whose carriages have their own motors, either diesel (DMUs) or electric (EMUs), and do not need to be hauled by a locomotive. ...

After delivery of the Bluebirds, New York City never again purchased any lightweight, articulated or PCC technology rail equipment, nor did it purchase equipment to sustain the lines and portions of the elevated system incapable of operating subway cars, dismantling them instead between 1940 and 1975. 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1975 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ...