Rapido HO 145098 Gallery Commuter Cab Coach, Unlettered

Budd HEP-Equipped ‘Gallery’ Commuter Cars

With the conclusion of World War II and the shift towards increased commuting from the newly established suburbs and downtown jobs, railroads were looking for ways to replace their fleets with modern equipment following the war. With the need to haul more passengers per car, and with the length of cars maxed out, Pullman and Budd developed what would quickly be called the “gallery car.” Using a standard passenger car chassis design, the height of the car was extended to the maximum clearance permitted and cantilevered walkways were placed above standard passenger car (similar to luggage racks) with additional seating added on an upper level. The open space between the upper levels allowed a single conductor to check all tickets, and also gave the cars their nickname – The Gallery Car. With wide center doors and stairs to each of the 4 rows of gallery seating, these cars proved immensely popular in carrying more passengers and reducing loading time at stations.

The first examples of these cars built by Budd would be delivered to the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad in 1950 with an order of 30 coaches. The first cab cars would be developed for the Milwaukee Road with an order of 8 (along with 32 regular coaches) in 1961. Over 350 cars in total would be built by Budd, with the final examples rolling off the line in 1978. The design has continued on being constructed by other builders more recently, including Nippon-Sharyo.

While the Milwaukee Road and Rock Island fleets were built with Head End Power (HEP), the original Burlington cars were equipped for steam heat. Starting in 1973, the Burlington Northern started a program to convert the original CBQ fleet to include HEP. This resulted in the cars losing their steam heat in favor of electric heat and the original incandescent lights was replaced with fluorescent lights.

All remaining gallery cars from the Burlington, Rock Island, Milwaukee Road and Chicago & North Western would go on to form the backbone for Metra, the new regional commuter operator in the Chicago area, starting in 1984. Many of the original Budd-built cars, as well as some Pullman examples, continue to provide service today.

Each Rapido ‘Gallery’ Commuter Car features:
Designed from original blueprints, design drawings and field measurements
Track-powered flicker-free interior lighting compatible with DC and DCC layouts
Free-rolling, highly-detailed trucks with metal wheelsets
Minimum 22″ radius curves recommended
Full underbody including HEP conduit and equipment
Complete interior including actual “gallery” seating
Accurate painting and lettering, both inside and out
Correctly-colored tinted windows
Metal side grab irons and sprung diaphragms
Constant flicker-free interior lighting in both DC and DCC
Controllable cab car lighting in both DC and DCC, including headlights, marker lights, as well as ditch lights and strobe lights (when applicable)