The R21 was a New York City Subway car built by St. Louis Car Company from 1956 to 1957 for the IRTA Division. A total of 250 cars were built, arranged as single units. Two versions were manufactured: Westinghouse -powered cars and General Electric -powered cars. The first R21s entered service on November 7, 1956. The R21s were replaced by the R62As in the 1980s, and the final train of R21s ran on December 30, 1987. Four R21 cars were preserved while the rest were scrapped.
Description
The R21s were numbered 7050-7299. They were similar to the R17s, except that they featured windows of a slightly different design. The cab doors were mounted the same way as the newer R62 and R62A subway cars; however this was not repeated on the next order for R22 subway cars, which reverted to the normally mounted cab doors. There were two versions of the R21: Westinghouse Electric-powered cars and General Electric-powered cars.
History
The first set of R21s was placed in service on the train on November 7, 1956, replacing most of the IRT "high voltage" type cars. They ran in service for most of their service lives on the IRT Broadway–Seventh Avenue Line, but some cars were sent to the IRT Lexington Avenue Line in later years.
Retirement
The R62A fleet started replacing the R21s in the 1980s, and their final day in revenue service was on December 30, 1987. The majority of the fleet was scrapped, but some R21s have been set aside for preservation over the years, including:
As of 2016, two other R21s survive as work cars, including:
7121 - converted to R71 hose reach car P7121 and overhauled under the R159 program.
7287 - converted to R71 de-icer car RD345 and overhauled under the R159 program. This car is currently located at the Westchester Yard.
Car 7267 is currently at Concourse Yard coupled up to R17 6895 and is classified as a garbage motor. The mechanical condition of 7267 is unknown, and both cars have not been moved since 2002. In 2009, the car was stripped of parts, such as sash windows and roll signs. Both cars are now awaiting scrapping. Cars 7234, 7241, 7269, 7276, and 7287 were converted to R71 rider cars after retirement, but were replaced with R161s in the mid-2000s and eventually reefed. Cars 7055, 7210, 7211, 7243, 7278, 7289, and 7296 were converted to R123 continuous welded rail holder cars for set CCR and overhauled under the R128 program. They have since been retired.
