The First B Car – BART car 501/1501

The oldest remaining car of the legacy fleet is a B2 car numbered 1501. It was built 52 years ago as B car 501, and third legacy fleet car ever built (see note 1), delivered in December 1970.

The 501 in Spring 1971, almost brand new. Squier collection.

The 1501 in 2019, after many decades of sun and service. My photo

The first 10 cars of the fleet were prototype cars, meant to identify and resolve planned and unplanned “bugs” – from their construction, to their troubleshooting, in a similar vein to prototype aircraft. The 501 was no exception, and one such example of the car’s early assignments includes truck equalization testing. See note 2 for remarks about line numbers.
It was returned to Rohr during the summer of 1972 and redelivered for revenue service later in the year.

The 501 under construction. BART Progress Report photo, Western Railway Museum Archives

As part of the midlife rebuilding of the A and B cars (awarded to ADtranz/Bombardier), B car 501 was rebuilt and renumbered into B2 1501 (See note 3). As of summer 2022, the 1501 is assigned to Daly City Yard and can be found in the middle of Blue line trains (alongside others) from time to time.

Would love to have this plate, if the car is scrapped. Hopefully it is preserved.

Interior of 1501. Standard B2 car.

Notes:
Note 1: A cars 101 and 102 were the first and second cars built, respectively. They were both replaced and scrapped following the conclusion of the prototype car testing.
Note 2: Three B cars (501-503) and one A car (107) were kept following prototype car testing. The line numbers are as follows: 501-3; 502-5; 503-6; 107-10
Note 3: The original A and B cars were built in Chula Vista, CA, and rebuilt in Pittsburg, CA. Most of the cars have never left California (outside A cars 111, 191 and 246).

Sources:
BART Progress Reports (1970) via Western Railway Museum Archives
Pacific News (August 1978)
Modern Heavy Rail by Andre K.
BART Fleet List v. 5.6.7
Comments and corrections welcome.