What are the AAR reporting marks for the New York City Subway?

Question

If you don't know what I'm talking about, don't answer.

Answer 1

Looking at all the great information and photos on source site 1 (below) the best I can figure out is, maybe, NYCTA for New York City Transit Authority. Some of the references on that site also use NYCT.

The official agency site (source 2 below) uses MTA (Metropolitan Transit Authority) which also appears on some of the work equipment and locomotives. But even here they use NYCT in some places.

I've never seen anything in Official Guides or other places to confirm if any of these is, in fact, "official". They may not be required to have AAR reporting marks if they don't have interchange of equipment with other railroads.

Answer 2

the reporting marks differ with each line and the time the train left the originating station.  for example.  an N train leaving from Coney Island-Stillwell Terminal heading to Astoria-Ditmars at 18:47 (6:47 PM) would be called Coney Island November 18:47 (November is for N train....kinda like Robert would be for R train or Michael for the M train to avoid naming confusion).  The operator says this naming sequence every time he calls dispatch...for example...Coney Island November 18:47 to Dekalb...waiting at A147 ball...meaning that he is waiting at the red signal with the name A147.  I know this stuff because i work for the TA.  I hope this helps you to understand better.

Answer 3

LOL it's funny how many people don't realize they don't know what they're talking about...

Doesn't necessarily have one.  AAR reporting marks aren't relevant to captive equipment, only equipment that interchanges with the national railroad system.  So what equipment does the NYCTA interchange?  It must have their mark.

I checked several sources and it was difficult even finding a complete list of reporting marks. (using SMRS as a litmus test; a tiny museum that has probably never interchanged a car with their own mark.)  Only the last one qualifies, and it had your answer:

NYCT

However the diffficulty of finding this suggests that NYCTA doesn't interchange very often.   Looking at photos of their work equipment, I don't see any with a COTS placard, a prerequisite for interchange, and that suggests they don't own interchange cars at all and their mark is not in use.  My guess is they rely on others for their interchange rolling stock, perhaps MCNW or LI.

Answer 4

I don't think they have any as they are all owned by the transit authority.