The (E) Train

[INDman]

Oh of course, the A-cars will have less seating due to the full width cab, but the B-cars not having cabs [which takes up at least 2 seats each] at least gives back maybe 2 seats total [*taken into fact the wider doors taking away 2 seats]

 

I still hate that the bench seat can only hold 6 because of the damn pole.

[Grand Concourse]

I still hate that the bench seat can only hold 6 because of the damn pole.

 

That's true, I don't like the placement of those poles either. It would've been nice if they were spaced away from the seats.

[Urbanfortitude]

I saw someone once sitting with the pole between their legs. It looked...very...uncomfortable ;;

[LRG]

I saw someone once sitting with the pole between their legs. It looked...very...uncomfortable ;;

 

Oh my gosh...I would have freaked out!

[Q33toLaGuardia]

I love taking the train but now I hate it right now. I used to take it from school at World Trade Center to Jackson Hts - Roosevelt Ave to catch the Q33/47 to work at LGA. At night I dont mind it as well (well didn't mind), taking it to 23rd-Ely Ave to catch the . But now with the GO going on now, when i get to Jackson Heights, I gotta debate now on how to get home (Brooklyn) from there since is running on the and cuts me off from the : either take the to 45 Road and walk to Court Sq (longer walk now since MTA is building a connection to the finally), take the to Sutphin Blvd and take the , or take the to Delancey St and take the . I know I can take the shuttle bus and for 2 days I took it with no problems. Then the very next time I took it, I was waiting for 45 mins for one and not one showed up. Seems that MTA had the run on the at 10pm and the shuttle buses service start at 12:01am. Had to walk to 23rd-Ely Ave and get there to find out that the was running to Forest Hills. I could have just taken the at Jackson Heights and been home istead of dealing with that mess

 

 

Lesson learned: Shuttle bueses FAIL!!!!

[nel070]

The day the R32's were removed from the line was the greatest day in the history of the line.

 

amen as a queens blvd resident when the had the 32s i avoided that line like the plague i would walk two or three blocks while in the city to get an a 46 now the is all 160s is probably the best line on queens blvd because its express and its runs very fast and the 160s are perfect for the

[Forest Glen]

See, if you are so happy about it, why are you 'unhappy' about the fleet being filled with bland R160's?

 

I wanted the to have R160's. I didn't want every single B Division line to have R160's. I wanted to keep a few R40 slants and R42's for the sake of variety. However, the R32 is the worst car I ever rode on.

[nel070]

I wanted the to have R160's. I didn't want every single B Division line to have R160's. I wanted to keep a few R40 slants and R42's for the sake of variety. However, the R32 is the worst car I ever rode on.

 

100 percent right

[BSmith]

Don't the R160s have less seating than the R32s or just about the same?

 

The R160 has less seating than the R42/R40 that has less seating than the R32/R38. The R32/R38 has more narrow doors than the R42/R40, that's why and the R143/R160 has space between the doors and the seats.

[BSmith]

I still hate that the bench seat can only hold 6 because of the damn pole.

 

Catch an R42 while you can. It's not the pole. The R42s also only hold 6 between the doors as did the R40s. The R32s and R38s hold 7. Ride a C, you'll see what I mean.

 

I think the R32 was a great design for crowds. I don't love them at all but their offset doors and poles away from the doors made traffic flow close to ideal. The R160 has so many design flaws.

 

Am I glad to see the R160s? Yes. I could not stand the R32s on the E line because I'm older than many posters here and know the E line when it ran R46s in the 1980s (and the Queens passengers LOVED them), slants in the late 1960s and 1970s, R44s for a time in the 1970s, and the R32s design always felt ancient to me and made the E feel like a poor step son to all the other QBL lines in the 90s and especially 2000s that ran primarily R46s (my favorite car). But, there's no doubt about it, the R32s are absolutely the best design for handling crowds as well as seating more people than the newer trains. The R44/R46 seats a lot of people, but, their dwell time in station isn't good.

[SubwayGuy]

I still hate that the bench seat can only hold 6 because of the damn pole.

 

Good point. That pole often doesn't really serve a purpose. Occasionally I see people using it but most use the horizontal poles over the seats. Maybe it's for kids or shorter people, but I'd like it better if it weren't there either. Those who needed something shorter to hold on to could stay closer to the doors where there are poles and that ribbing at the side of each bench...which is good anyway since they are smaller they'll have a tougher time getting to the doors to exit so might as well place them closer to the doors. I don't know though...just spitballing here...not like I have the money to fund an "exhaustive study" on subway car pole placement.

[LRG]

Thanks for that, BSmith. I thought the R40s and R42s had 7 seats in between the doors, but I checked some photos, and they have 6. So I guess your chances of getting a seat on an R32/R38 are higher than an R40/R42 (50 beats 44). R160 "A" cars have 44 as well, while the "B" cars have 40. (The R143's "B" car has 42 because of the fold-down seats at the cab end, which the R160s don't have). Wow, it's astonishing that the newer we get with 60' trains, your chances of getting a seat slims down a bit....

[BroadwayBuffer]

Good point. That pole often doesn't really serve a purpose. Occasionally I see people using it but most use the horizontal poles over the seats. Maybe it's for kids or shorter people, but I'd like it better if it weren't there either. Those who needed something shorter to hold on to could stay closer to the doors where there are poles and that ribbing at the side of each bench...which is good anyway since they are smaller they'll have a tougher time getting to the doors to exit so might as well place them closer to the doors. I don't know though...just spitballing here...not like I have the money to fund an "exhaustive study" on subway car pole placement.

 

I've heard that some were critical of the R-110Bs for lack of poles for shorter people, although that was a completely different arrangement from the R-160s. I was wondering if those poles may be there for ADA reasons, although I don't know.

[Grand Concourse]

I wanted the to have R160's. I didn't want every single B Division line to have R160's. I wanted to keep a few R40 slants and R42's for the sake of variety. However, the R32 is the worst car I ever rode on.

 

What I don't understand is: as bad as you claim the R32's brake screechings are, it's about the same if not worse on some R42's that were running on the Queens Blvd lines.

One R42 sounded like a loud 'bang' noise [someone recorded it on youtube, i forgot who it was]. I heard it, in person, last year on the Vintage train run at Queens Plaza. No R32 I ever rode on sounded worse than that R42.

[Tinamarie]

The train is alright. I really have no problems with it, but it does annoy me when it goes from Jackson Heights to Forest Hills. It feels like forever sometimes! One time I was standing the whole time when it was going between those stops and the train kept stopping and going and it felt like or it literally took 20 minutes just to go from Jackson Heights to Forest Hills. It was really annoying.

[Grand Concourse]

during the rush hours, for a few added minutes more, you would be better off taking the local into the city and having room to either sit or at least breathe.

[R32 3348]

Warning: Replying to multiple people, long post

 

Yeah, when I was coming back during the weekends from Rockland Co., the R-160 is really crowded, I always liked the R-32s on the for the room and the capability to walk through without saying 'excuse me'.

 

Now, I am considering taking the Metro-North to 42nd - Grand Central and taking the to Times Sq and transfering to the to Forest Hills.

 

The is never that crowded with the R-32's. The is now jammed with the R-160's, .

I highly doubt you will be able to afford taking the Metro North - I'm not referring to you in general but it's not worth spending a significant amount more money just so the train isn't crowded. If you wanted a less crowded train then take the local - that's why those trains are there.

Why does the train have to have R160s? It was awesome with the R32s. Its just like the redbirds, only longer with one extra door.

Try to think more like a rider and less like a railfan. A rider wants a more comfortable car with more modern features. Plus, general rider opinion seems to be that the more modern cars should go to the more heavily used lines.

Wow, that's just sad. People say they like the R160s when their chances of getting a seat are now less!

With a line like the it really doesn't matter because it's impossible to get a seat during rush hour anyway.

IDK if there is a speed restriction around 65th for both express & local (most likely local) as I know there's a lot of work lights over there but then again as of lately I have been sticking with the local b/c around the 11 PM hour there has been a work train going down the Express Track in a slow speed fouling up the express trains otherwise the express is moving well now as long as it's not in the 11 PM hour!

No speed restriction ATM. However I'm suspecting that they will start a track chip-out there soon, just like in the 53rd St. tunnel. I am avoiding the line like the plague and just taking the to the - the will be slower than the local. I usually just take whatever train arrives at Roosevelt anyway (except for the ).

That is also few of the points I am trying to point out, the middle bar on the R-160's seats are also another reason there is less room. As well as the thick walls, every millimeter count, !

Unfortunately the older R32-R42 documents do not detail the total passenger capacity. They just list the total number of seats. However, both the R32 and R160 are the same width (the shape of the car is only slightly different and really doesn't matter), and if there is any difference in total capacity between the two cars it almost definitely isn't a large difference.

Really? I always thought the R160s were designed with wider doors than the 32s, and even the 68s for that matter.

This was only done with the R142/As in comparison to the redbirds, IINM, since these cars were specifically designed for the heavy crowds on the mainline IRT.

The train is alright. I really have no problems with it, but it does annoy me when it goes from Jackson Heights to Forest Hills. It feels like forever sometimes! One time I was standing the whole time when it was going between those stops and the train kept stopping and going and it felt like or it literally took 20 minutes just to go from Jackson Heights to Forest Hills. It was really annoying.

This track work has ended and the speed restriction in this area has been lifted. Now this work is being done in the 53rd St. tunnel manhattan-bound, and it may also be done at 65th St. in the future.

[E train line]

I like E train I would never take local