General
This three aluminum-bodied articulated rapid transit unit is driven by eight 55 hp, 300-volt traction motors. It seats 96 and was ordered by the Chicago Rapid Transit Company but by the time it was delivered on its’ own wheels, the then newly created Chicago Transit Authority had taken over operation of both the CRT and the Chicago Surface Lines streetcar and bus systems (Chicago Motor Coach would be folded into CTA a few years later).
History
5001 and its Pullman-Standard sister 5002 and St. Louis Car Company built cousins 5003 and 5004 were test beds used to try new technology and design ideas. The majority of the superstructure is aluminum mounted on steel underframes in an A body, B body, A1 body configuration thus saving weight compared to the 4000 series steel cars then in use. Curved sides allowed for more elbow room for passengers. The propulsion and braking system was an adaptation of the all-electric PCC streetcar controls used by the newest streetcars then on Chicago and American streets with one exception. Instead of foot pedal controls like a bus (or lever controls unique to Chicago PCCs) these cars used a single handle dead-man Cineston control for both power and braking. The four units were tested throughout the elevated system and a design flaw arose as there was no provision for the conductor to monitor for passengers entering or exiting when closing the doors. As the first 6000 series cars began to appear in service the four experimental units could be trained with them as this design flaw was rectified on the newer cars. As odd-men-out, the cars were not popular with employees especially maintenance personnel. With the success of the “Skokie Swift” (yellow line) demonstration and increased ridership the 5000’s finally found a home in late 1964. They were renumbered 51 through 54, painted in the standard CTA livery of the day, and equipped with motorized pan trolley power collectors which could be raised and lowered remotely when the cars transitioned between overhead catenary and third rail on the Skokie line which had been North Shore Line right-of-way between Dempster Street and Howard Street in Chicago.
Narrative
As the 5000’s, now the 51-54 group, were reaching the end of their service lives, unit 51 was taken out of service in 1985 and repainted silver with red trim and a gray band through the windows, renumbered 5001, re-equipped with trolley poles, and even re-lettered “Chicago Rapid Transit Company” to reflect its appearance when first delivered in 1947. This was done so it could become part of CTA’s heritage fleet of rapid transit cars that were operated on railfan excursions and historic commemorations on the L. As management changed and budgets tightened, the historic fleet was reduced, the Fox River Trolley Museum was able to obtain the unit. It was loaded onto a long piggy-back flat car fitted with rails at Skokie Shops and then delivered to the interchange of the AE&FR at Coleman by the Illinois Central Gulf railroad. The museum used a portable rail ramp borrowed from the Kentucky Railway Museum to line up with the rails on the flat, and after the parking brakes were released, it was pushed with car movers until gravity took over which allowed it to roll off the flat car onto its’ new home rails. The trolley poles were reinstalled, and it joined the museum pool of operational cars. It became the first Polar ExpressTM train for the first few years until it suffered an electrical component failure. Cars 40 and 43 took its’ place. The unit is very restorable with key parts on hand, but it is just a matter of time, money and people power to return this link in the evolution of Chicago L cars back to operating status.
Author: Joseph Hazinski, curator