▲ 13 r/mbta
Q: Why do rapid transit car numbers always start with zero?
A: To distinguish them from surface streetcars.
This is a revelation to me, but very easy to believe because I've always wondered it! Do we all believe this? Is this commonly known?
According to the New England Transit Roster (roster.transithistory.org) the new CRRC Type #14 cars are numbered 1400-1551, and their #4 Red Line twins are 1900-2151, dropping the convention. Blue line #5 East Boston cars 0700-0793 built by Seimens 2007-2008 seem to be the last heavy rail cars adhering to the convention.
u/DaveDavesSynthist — 3 days ago