BART in May 2023: End of the C1 cars

May 2023 is a historic month in the history of BART - the C1 cars exited service. The first to enter and the last to leave, of the C car design, they were in service for 35 years. The C cars once numbered 230 cars, divided into the 150(#301-450) C1 cars (originally and often known as the C cars) built by Alsthom in the 1980s to 1990, and the 80 (#2501-2580) C2 cars built by Morrison Knudsen. The C2s were all scrapped from 2019 to 2021, leaving the C1s as the last C cars left in revenue service. The C cars were designed to be used as mid cars (like a B car) or as lead or trail cars (like an A car), providing greater operational flexibility. Additionally, the C cars included some technical changes designed to increase reliability compared to the troubles experienced with the A/B cars in the 1970s. The C1 cars were a bit of a reminder of BART’s past. Never rehabilitated (like the A2/B2 cars), the C1 cars retained the original faux-teak wood arm rests and DC propulsion like the original A/B cars. It was hard to mistake a C car in a train, buzzing away, while the rest of the consist would whine chromatically. I last rode C1 cars on May 5th, including cars 432, 328, 339, 379, 380, 350, 361, and 343. Now, these cars are being scrapped/recycled, and one will be preserved at the Western Railway Museum in the near future. C Car Consist log for 5/5/23: Green line 339, 329, 1 Zoho One B2 - 1897 350, 343, 1 Zoho One B2 - 1692 449, 365 380, 379 Blue line: 376, 361 1501 behind 361 328, 394 More about the BART fleet at: https://www.BARTchives.com More about BART C1 cars at: https://bartcars.weebly.com/c1-cars.html 0:00 C car collage - WRM, BART, and my pictures showing C1 cars from design to 2020s 0:14 311 leads a Green line train to Daly City at Fremont. Note missing number plates. 0:44 329 leads a Green line train to Berryessa at 16th St Mission. To be preserved by Western Railway Museum. 1:34 329 departs 16th St Mission, 339 trails 1:53 328 departs 24th St Mission. Blue line train 2:23 394 leads a Daly City train at Glen Park, 328 trails 2:55 376 leads, 361 trails, a Blue line train to Daly City at 16th St Mission 3:30 The blue side logos of the C1 cars 3:39 365 departs Glen Park, Green line train to Daly City, 449 trails 4:00 339 arrives at 24th St Mission, Green line train to Daly City 4:32 Riding 339 7:12 Train departs, with 329 trailing. Another C car departs on track 2 7:32 A2 car 1230 leads and 432 trails a Green line train to Daly City at Fremont 8:08 Inside 432. Car scrapped this week! 9:21 Riding 432 at San Leandro 11:14 Passing by 1234 with a C1 car trailing 11:35 380 leads and 379 trails on a Green line train at 16th St Mission 12:12 Inside 379 12:21 Riding 379 13:16 379 departs 24th St Mission 13:41 379 leads the same consist going back to Berryessa, with 380 trailing 14:22 Inside 380 14:28 Riding 380. Note the C2 car intercar closure doors 14:55 Riding 350 15:13 350 departs Balboa Park, 343 trail car 16:04 1230 toots into Bay Fair, 432 trails again 16:40 Final ride on 432 17:18 432 departs San Leandro 17:47 Ride on 343 departing Union City 21:30 343 at Fremont. My final ride for a C1 car in scheduled revenue service.