| 2200 series | |
|---|---|
2200 series car 2218 leads a Pink Line train at Clark/Lake |
|
| Manufacturer | Budd Company |
| Constructed | 1969–1970 |
| Entered service | 1969 |
| Refurbishment | 1990–1992 |
| Number built | 150 |
| Number in service | 130 |
| Number scrapped | 14 |
| Formation | Married pair |
| Fleet numbers | 2201–2350 2351 (renumbered from 2307) 2352 (renumbered from 2316) |
| Capacity | 42 (seated-A car) 46 (seated-B car) |
| Operator | Chicago Transit Authority |
| Depot(s) | Desplaines Yard Rosemont Yard |
| Line(s) served | Blue Line |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | Stainless steel |
| Car length | 48 feet (15 m) |
| Width | 9 feet 4 inches (2.84 m) |
| Height | 12 feet (3.7 m) |
| Doors | 4 per car |
| Maximum speed | 55 miles per hour (89 km/h) |
| Weight | 47,400 pounds (21,500 kg) |
| Electric system(s) | 600 V DC |
| Current collection method | third rail |
| Gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Standard gauge |
The 2200 series is a series of Chicago 'L' car built between 1969 and 1970 by the Budd Company of Philadelphia. 150 cars were built, 130 of them remain in service as of 2012.
The 2200 series was the second series of five interoperable series of Chicago 'L' cars known as the High Performance Family. These cars were the last 'L' cars built with blinker doors, with all subsequent cars employing sliding doors. Due to the narrow opening afforded by these doors, the 2200 series cars cannot admit a bicycle or wheelchair, and so are not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. For this reason, these trains can no longer operate alone in revenue service, and are always coupled with at least one pair of cars with sliding doors. In addition, these cars are relegated to "belly car" service in train consists more than four cars long (which means that they are in the middle, but not at either end, of the train consist).
In 1967, the Chicago Transit Authority embarked on two ambitious rapid transit construction projects, both in the medians of major expressways, namely the Dan Ryan and the Kennedy. These two projects necessitated the order of new rail cars to supplement the existing fleet, and the City of Chicago ordered 150 new rail cars from the Budd Company to fill that need. The city retained two important consultants on the project, the Chicago Transit Authority (who would operate the cars) and the architectural firm of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, which was heavily involved in the architectural work of the new stations. The new cars were designed to complement the modernist approach that SOM was taking to the design of the new stations, and featured unpainted fluted sides, a first for the CTA that would later become the standard for its rail fleet.
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