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Anyway I digress. I'd love to see more El's built, I'm not a fan of the underground tunnels, especially when the summer is on and it's 30+ degrees hotter on the platform than the outside temp.
The main suppliers of R142a, R143, and R160s are Kawasaki though, and it is probably more convenient for the MTA because the assembly plant is in Yonkers right next to the MetroNorth Hudson line, so they can easily deliver finished trains to the MTA. At this point, Kawasai and Alstorm are the main providers for NYC subway cars, with Kawasaki getting more projects. Kawasaki will probably remain the main manufacturer for the new R-179s, whenever they show up, and are confirmed to be manufacturing the R188.
My understanding -- and this was from talking to a guide at the transit museum -- has always been that the track gauges don't vary, but the car widths do and, more importantly, so necessarily do the widths of the subway tunnels. So a 2 train can travel anywhere an N train can, but N cars are simply too wide to enter 2 train tunnels. A crazy result to be sure, one that centralized control over the system from the start would have prevented.
My understanding -- and this was from talking to a guide at the transit museum -- has always been that the track gauges don't vary, but the car widths do and, more importantly, so necessarily do the widths of the subway tunnels. So a 2 train can travel anywhere an N train can, but N cars are simply too wide to enter 2 train tunnels. A crazy result to be sure, one that centralized control over the system from the start would have prevented.
This is true. MTA Subways use standard gage, as well as Metro North and Long Island Railroad, so theoretically, IRT subway lines could go on any MTA operated rails that are 3rd rail electrified. This is probably why the Yonkers Kawasaki plant is ideal for the MTA since they can just drive them new straight from the plant to the MTA system.
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