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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by MichaelSol [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by CSSHEGEWISCH [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by nanaimo73 If UP electrified the Sunset route, would that increase capacity, and lessen the amout of double tracking needed ? [/quote] Probably not. All that would change would be the ultimate source of energy for moving the trains. UP would be better off spending its money to continue the double-tracking project. [/quote] Because of overload capacity which is not available in a diesel-electric locomotive, electric locomotives have more available short time horsepower. This improves acceleration, as well as offering improved speed on grades. On the same track, an electrically-powered train operates, typically, at a higher average train speed. A rule of thumb is that electrification will improve track capacity by anywhere between 5 and 20% depending on a variety of factors including number of meets, grades, curvature, etc. [/quote] Which is why I believe UP would be better off electrifying it's Blue Mountain lines between Hinkle OR and Nampa ID, rather than electrifying the Sunset route. This is UP's big headache in terms of operational constraints, and due to the grades and other mountainous characteristics would provide the biggest bang for the buck in terms of increasing capacity to and from the PNW. I'm not all that familiar with the Sunset route, but isn't it's alignment more in tune to a lot of flat running? As for BNSF, they should look into re-electrifying the Stevens Pass line, since current train limits are around 25 to 30 per day, and they probably would gain by increasing that capacity to 35 or 40 per day. And not only in raw train numbers, but the types of trains that run over that line as well, in that electrifying would allow grain and coal trains to use that line once again without the operational fears of slow lugging and broken knuckles. This would also allow the Puget Sound bound grain trains and the Centralia coal trains to vacate the Columbia Gorge line, whose capacity problems are not as "fixable" with electrification.
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