MA 51

The MA series (also: MA 51) is a type of vehicle the Paris Métro. The Paris public transport company RATP asked the MA as the first new vehicles after the Second World War in 1951 in service. "MA" means Matériel articulé ( joint material ), mostly following numeral in the model series of the Paris Métro, the year of first appointment or first entry into service. In the case of the MA series is often waived, as there was no follow-up series of the type MA more.

History

The existing 1948 as a single in the Paris Métro series Sprague -Thomson was no longer sufficient for the increased traffic after the war. In addition, the oldest car came from the year 1905 and thus were over forty years old. The administration Provisoire of Transports Parisiens ( APTP ) therefore developed a concept for new trains since 1945. They should consist of 36 meter long units of three cars, two units should be easily a 72 -meter-long train coupled, which could be separated just as quickly. To save weight, it was decided to achtachsige trains that rested centrally on two Jakobs trucks. Disadvantage of this was already contemplated construction since 1936 that the three car bodies were not mutually separate.

Description

The existing three- car units are 36.62 meters long, 13.31 meters long each end cars have four 1.00 meter wide doors at equal intervals per side. The 10.00 -meter-long intermediate car has only three doors of equal width and identical intervals. The two inner bogies are equipped with two 94- hp motors motor bogies, the two outer idler bogies. Two engines are combined to form a group with the control system Jeumont - Heidmann (characterized by a servo motor driven camshaft) is controlled. The air brake of the type Westinghouse are regulated during braking and releasing, the latter represented a novelty in the Parisian network represents a mercury- controlled anti -lock braking system ( the mercury contained in a tube increases in blocking the brakes and triggers an electrical contact from ) and Scharfenberg couplers at both ends of the three -car train were other innovations.

Contrasting the new trains with her light blue - light gray livery differed strongly from the Sprague -Thomson car, the sections located in the middle of the first class cars were first kept in yellow. Mid-1970s were the trains uniformly throughout painted below the window bands in a darker blue, with a dark blue stripe at the top. Henceforth marked above the windows a yellow ribbon compartments of the second, a blue of the, now housed in one end cars, first class. This coloring has been preserved until the retirement of vehicles.

The interior lighting of the car was for the first time with fluorescent tubes, the leather- upholstered seats in both classes were similar to those of the first class of the old trains. Unused cabs could be added thanks to a movable partition wall of the passenger compartment.

Purchase and use

The main reason for the appointment was made in December 1948 was the imminent renewal of a Streckenasts the line 13 ( line B of the former north-south ) from Porte de Saint- Ouen Carrefour Pleyel. The forty three -car trains were built E 001 to E 040 ("E" stands for élément ) at Brissoneau et Lotz.

The first vehicle was delivered to the countries along the line 12 Vaugirard depot in September 1951. The other trains came gradually, between February 1952 and May 1953 on the line 13 for use. During the day wrong two together coupled units on the Y- shaped route, the weaknesses of trains ( separation of two three-car units) was only tentatively carried out in the evening and on Sundays. Common problems with the electrical connections leading to the final expansion of Scharfenberg couplers in 1972.

The MA perverted initially only on the line 13, before this was combined with the former line 14 and equipped with MF 67 trains. Between spring 1975 and June 1976, the MA series was converted to the line 10 where it only wrong as a six - car trains, and remained there until its gradual phase-out from 1988. In this connection, the vehicles of the series MF 67 were appropriately repainted and received among other modified door locking devices.

Shutdown and decommissioning

Back in the early 1950s was characterized from a preference in favor of the RATP pneumatic tyred trains. With the MP 51 reversed from August 1951 A prototype on the Voie navette between stations Porte des Lilas and Pré Saint- Gervais. 1956 met, a first for the line 11, the first production vehicles with pneumatic tires MP series 55. Since the RATP which went out to have converted all the lines to the new system until the turn of the millennium, was decided not to further order of running on iron wheels vehicles initially. Only with the MF 67 came from in 1968 such new material on the tracks.

Disappeared in 1988 and the first trains of the MA Series of the track. The last regular day of use of a MA- train was the 15th of June 1994. Except for two units all features of this series were retired and largely scrapped.

Whereabouts

The RATP has received one unit of the MA series, another is located in the Association d' Exploitation du Matériel Sprague ( ADEMAS ).