R15 (New York City Subway car)

The R15s were numbered 5953–5999 & 6200–6252. The cars were the first to feature the round "turtle-back" roofs and have the conductors' door controls located inside the motorman's cabs, as opposed to on the outsides as they were on the R12s and R14s. While the R15s ran in solid consists on the Flushing line, the cars never did so on the mainlines; they were always intermixed in trains of newer cars. Two versions of the R15 were used: Westinghouse Electric-powered cars (5953–5976 and 6200–6225) and General Electric-powered cars (5977–5999 and 6226–6252). ==History==

Delivery of the cars began in January 1950, shortly after the last R14s were delivered. The first R15s entered service on the '''''' (IRT Flushing Line) on February 4, 1950. All cars were in service as of April 23, 1950. Car 6239 has been preserved by the New York Transit Museum since 1976. This car was retrofitted with the first prototype air conditioners and went into service on September 8, 1955, but the prototype failed and was removed. It was restored to operational status and has operated on many fantrips since 2004, specifically on the Train of Many Colors. ==References==