Queens Borough Hall's Vintage Subway Car Is For Sale

QUEENS, NY — Most New Yorkers ride the subway, but now's your chance to own one.

That's right, a last-of-its-kind Redbird subway car is available for purchase in a city-organized auction, with bids currently starting at $31,100 (up from the starting price of $6,500 after 23 bids).

"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to own a piece of history that is so intrinsic to the City’s identity," said NYC Department of Citywide Administrative Services Commissioner Dawn M. Pinnock, whose agency is overseeing the auction.

"That blazing red subway car is as memorable and iconic as yellow taxi cabs, and now it could be yours."

Redbird Car #9075 (as the for-sale car is known) was once used to transport New Yorkers to and from the 1964 World's Fair in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, but retired in 2003, at which point the entire Redbird fleet was being taken offline in favor of newer stainless-steel cars.

Many Redbirds were ceremonially dumped into the Atlantic Ocean to become barrier reefs, but the one currently for sale was instead stationed outside Queens Borough Hall in Kew Gardens.

In addition to its hefty (and growing) price tag, a major catch in buying the train is its transport: the buyer is responsible for picking up the 50-foot, 40-ton car and removing it from Queens Borough Hall within 10 days of winning the bid, auction organizers said.

Before bidding, interested New Yorkers should review the listing's full terms and conditions, DCAS suggested.

The auction is one of dozens organized by DCAS, which handles surplus City property — ranging from office wares to public health goods.

New Yorkers interested in buying Redbird Car #9075 need to hop on the train (literally) and place a bid by July 8, when the auction is slated to end.