| Gallery Car | |
| Manufacturer: | Pullman Company, Budd Company, Amerail, Canadian Vickers and Nippon Sharyo |
| Yearconstruction: | 1950s-present |
| Yearservice: | 1950-present |
| Capacity: | 153-161 |
| Carbody: | LAHT steel body on a steel frame |
| Carlength: | 85feet |
| Entrylevelorstep: | Step |
| Doors: | 1 per side |
The Gallery Car is a bilevel rail car, originally created by the Pullman Company as the Pullman Gallery Car. It has had five total different manufacturers since its creation, including Budd, St. Louis Car Company, Amerail, Nippon Sharyo and Canadian Vickers. These double-decker passenger car were built by Pullman-Standard during the 1950s to 1970s for various passenger rail operators in the United States.
The car's upper level was accessed by four sets of stairs in the middle vestibule. A narrow walkway with handrail and middle sections open looking below. Passengers disembarked from stairs from the vestibule on both sides. The original bench seating on the lower level was often upgraded to individual seats during rebuilds by operators. The 8700 series cars feature a control cab; this is not found in the 7600 series cars.
The Gallery Car is made of the usual stainless steel and is a bilevel, however there is a drop down in the middle to the first floor. This choice was made in particular to allow conductors to make a single pass through the car to collect passenger fares instead of having to go to each floor.[1]
The car height is near the same as a Superliner (16' 2"), being only approximately four inches shorter, at 15' ~10". The height isn't the same across the brands, such as when comparing a Budd to an Amerail.[2] [3] [4]
An electric multiple unit (EMU) variant of the railcar has been produced by Nippon Sharyo, of which only Metra and the NICTD South Shore Line own and operate. They operate on overhead wires, and only have cab car variants, with each set containing two.[5]
The Gallery Car was constructed originally by Pullman and Budd in between the 1950s-70's, as 4 different models: The 7006A, 7600,[6] 8700, and the Town Cars. The 8700 Series introduced the cab cars, with CN&W being the first customers for it.
Over time, as Pullman went bankrupt, other companies began to manufacture the railcar, those mainly being Amerail and Nippon Sharyo.[7] Nippon Sharyo is currently the only manufacturer left as all of its other manufacturers no longer exist.
| Model | Operators | Builder | Years | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7006A series | built 1950s | ||||
| 7600 series[10] | C&NW | St. Louis Car Company, Pullman Company | 1956–1961, 1963, 1965–68, 1970 | Built 262 | |
| 8700 series | C&NW | Pullman Company | 1960–1961, 1965–1968 | Built 64 | |
| Town Train series | Canadian Pacific Railways | Canadian Vickers | 1969 | Manufactured 9 gallery cars used by Canadian Pacific Railway Montreal passenger service and later used by STCUM and AMT and retired 2010. |
| Owner | Numbers | Type | Heritage | Year Built | Builder | Disposition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metra | 700–787790–795 | CoachCoach/Cab | Burlington Route | 1950–651965 | Budd | Operating, rebuilt in 1973700–740, 752, 781, 790–795 sold to MItrain in Michigan |
| 796–815816–8207100–7121 | Coach/CabCoachCoach | Burlington Northern | 197319731977–78 | Operating | ||
| 6001–6194 | Coach | Metra | 2002–05 | Nippon Sharyo | ||
| 7200–7382 | Milwaukee Road | 1961–80 | Budd | |||
| 7400–7497 | Metra | 1996–98 | Amerail | Operating, rebuilt in 2012 | ||
| 8200–8238 | Coach/Cab | Milwaukee Road | 1961–74 | Budd | Operating | |
| 8239–8275 | RTA | 1978–80 | Operating–Some have been converted to coaches. | |||
| 8400–8478 | Metra | 1994–98 | Morrison-Knudsen/Amerail | Operating–Mainly assigned to the UP lines. | ||
| 8501–8608 | 2002–05 | Nippon Sharyo | Operating | |||
| 7700–7866 | Coach | Chicago and North Western | 1960–70 | Pullman | Operating–Five have been purchased back due to money problems. | |
| 7600–7613 | 1955 | St. Louis | Retired–Two preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum | |||
| 7650–7681 | 1956 | Pullman | Retired–One preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum | |||
| 7867–7871 | Rock Island | 1970 | Pullman | 7869 now a bike car. Rest retired | ||
| 7881–7885 | Coach | Rock Island | 1970 | Pullman | Retired | |
| 7900–7901 | Club Car | Chicago and North Western | 1955 | St. Louis | ||
| 8700–8763 | Coach/Cab | 1960–68 | Pullman | Retired–One preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum8749 is a bicycle car. | ||
| VRE | 710–730[17] | Unspecified | VRE | 2006–08 | Sumitomo / Nippon Sharyo | Operating |
| 800–819, 850–869, 870–879 | Unspecified | 2007-09 | ||||
| 820–848† | Unspecified | 2014 | ||||
| WeGo Star | 400-402 | Cab | Metra, CB&Q, RTA, MITrain | Unspecified | Budd, Previous Cars by Pullman | Operating, Previous Pullmans Retired |
| 500-503 | Coach | |||||
| BNSF | 40-45 | Track Inspection | Transcisco Tours | Unspecified | Pullman | Operating |
| Caltrain | 3800-3825 | Trailer-Luggage | Caltrain | 1985 | Nippon Sharyo | Operating |
| 3826-3835 | Trailer-Bike | |||||
| 3836-3841 | Trailer | |||||
| 3842-3851 | 1986 | |||||
| 3852-3865 | 2000 | |||||
| 4000-4020 | Cab-Bike | 1985 | ||||
| 4021-4026 | 2000 |
| Owner | Numbers | Type | Heritage | Year Built | Builder | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metra | 1201–1226 | MU Coach | Metra | 2005 | Nippon Sharyo | Operating | |
| 1227–1238 | 2012 | Sumitomo Group[19] | |||||
| 1239–1279 | 2013 | ||||||
| 1280-1386 | 2014-2016 | ||||||
| 1501–1630 | Illinois Central | 1971–1972 | St. Louis | Retired | |||
| 1631–1666 | 1978–1979 | Bombardier | |||||
| South Shore Line | 301-314 | MU Coach | South Shore Line | 2009 | Nippon Sharyo | Operating |
Eventually this railcar will be phased out. Two large passenger railroads are getting new equipment to phase out the cars, with Metra and Virginia Railway Express purchasing custom Coradia Bi-Levels from Alstom,[21] [22] and Caltrain getting Stadler KISS EMUs from Stadler Rail,[23] to become fully electrified.