Chicago Transit Authority 6461




Facts and Figures


Current Number6461
Railway RepresentedChicago Transit Authority
BuilderSt. Louis Car Company
Built In1955
Builder's order id1779
Currently in (State)Illinois
--(Locality)Union
Totally out of svc date1986
(Initial retirement date)
Car Typerapid transit car
-subtypehalf of married-pair PCC set
-designation
Statusstored inoperable
More infohttp://www.irm.org/player/cta6461
Gauge4'8.5"
Constructionaluminum/steel
Roof typeAR
EndedSE
Length48'0"
Width9'4"
Height11'10"
Weight41000
#Seats50
#Wheels/Conf.8
Total HP220
TrucksClark B2
BrakesElectric
Compressorn/a
ControlWH XDA1D (B2A)
MotorsWH 1432LK (4)
Voltage (if not 600DC)
NotesPaired with #6462

Car 6461 in storage at IRM in 2016
Illinois Railway Museum
photo: https://www.irm.org/gallery/CTA6461/aaa

Car 6461 in storage at IRM in 2001
Chicago-L.org
photo: https://www.chicago-l.org/trains/gallery/images/6000/cta6461c.jpg

Car History by Frank Hicks


Chicago Transit Authority 6461-6462
Between 1950 and 1959, the CTA took delivery of 670 rapid transit cars of a type generally known as 6000's. The 6000's used modern PCC trucks and control equipment and nearly all extensively used remanufactured components from scrapped Chicago PCC streetcars, which lent them a distinctive look with their small standee windows. The first 620 cars were numbered 6001-6720 and were arranged in permanently-coupled ("married") pairs while for the last fifty cars, numbered 1-50, CTA chose a more traditional single car layout. The 6000's were delivered between 1950 and 1959 over the course of three major groups. The second and largest group, cars 6201-6470, was delivered in the mid-1950's. Cars 6461-6462 make up the only surviving set from that order. They differed from the first 200 cars most markedly in having the conductor's position arranged differently and in having doors that were flush with the curved car sides. This set was retired in the mid-1980's after a service life of about 50 years and acquired by IRM; it briefly at Union until a motor failure took the set out of service. The cars were partly repainted in their as-delivered colors in the mid-1990's but this cosmetic restoration was never completed.


Ownership History


OwnerCar NumFromToPreservation?Loan?
Chicago Transit Authority (Illinois, Chicago)64611955 1986 NO NO
Illinois Railway Museum (Illinois, Union)64611986 present YES NO