New York
\nNearly a century after the New York subway introduced its iconic \u201cR1-9\u201d fleet, the agency is putting some of the railcars back into service and city residents are jumping on board.
\nThe Metropolitan Transport Authority (MTA), which operates the Big Apple\u2019s sprawling \u2014 and sometimes detested \u2014 subway system, is reintroducing R1-9s onto the tracks for a limited time, complete with early 20th century accoutrements.
\nIn one car, for instance, a 1960s-style advertisement pays tribute to \u201cthe late president\u201d next to a black-and-white photo of John F Kennedy.
\nThe blast from the past \u2014 made possible through a collaboration between the MTA and the Transit Museum \u2014 is being celebrated by New Yorkers, with some dressing up to match the part.
\nOn a cold December Sunday morning, travelers in a period-appropriate costume stood alongside passengers in contemporary fashion, forming a delightfully anachronistic mix.
\nLatoya Fulton, a 40-year-old Bronx native who brought her daughter along to share the experience, savoured the nostalgia.
\n\u201cI remember riding the train with my mom, going to Yankee Stadium,\u201d she told AFP. \u201cI remember just being, just happy looking out the window when we went outside for the outside stop.\u201d Paddle ceiling fans swirl overhead and incandescent light bulbs lend a theatrical vibe.
\nWith no public address system on the vintage trains, a volunteer crewmember is left to call out the approaching stops.
\nRider Fox Hutson dons a military cap and camouflage jumpsuit for the journey, dressing as if he were a US soldier returning from war. \u201cThe past is going away, but this is the only way to preserve it and see some nice people,\u201d the 53-year-old photographer said. \u201cIt\u2019s a test of time, and these things still work.\u201d
\nThough the R1-9 train cars were widespread for decades since being introduced in the 1930s, they were fully withdrawn from service by 1977.
\nThe cars represent a touchstone in US history, inspiring artists like jazz legend Duke Ellington with his song \u201cTake the A Train.\u201d
\n\u201cThis was the first mass transit that grew the city,\u201d said Todd Glickman, a volunteer with the Transit Museum.
\n\u201cIt used to be in the early part of the 1900s, people would have to live very close to where they worked and where they went to school,\u201d he went on to explain.
\n\u201cAnd because of the advent of the subway system in 1904, people could travel in a short amount of time and that\u2019s what created the growth of the city.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
New York Nearly a century after the New York subway introduced its iconic \u201cR1-9\u201d fleet, the agency is putting some of the railcars back into service and city residents are jumping on board. The Metropolitan Transport Authority (MTA), which operates the Big Apple\u2019s sprawling \u2014 and sometimes detested \u2014 subway system, is reintroducing R1-9s onto […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":449863,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-449842","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n