So temperature outside was 86-87 degrees and it looked like the railroad had some sort of lawn sprinkler setup to spray river water on the rail ends on each side of the river bridge. The end part that connects once the bridge swings back into closed position to allow rail traffic through again. My rough guess is this is to keep the rails cool and from expansion? Not sure though, first time I noticed it on a rail trip.
Which bridge are you refering to? The lift bridge just south of Union station or something else? It doesn't "swing", it lifts up or drops down and if it expands in the heat, it can bind as you mention. This happens on many movable bridges. Water is a cheap coolent.
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Electroliner 1935Which bridge are you refering to? The lift bridge just south of Union station
Yes I believe it was the lift bridge.
It's the 21st street bridge
Interesting. Not to derail your topic to much. Which railfanning spot in Chicago do you recommend?
I will be going there at the end of the month to watch trains. Have not spent much time at all there.
Heat expansion is not just a problem with vertical lift bridges, it also affects double-leaf bascule bridges. I remember some years ago during a heat wave that the 106th Street bridge was raised for a freighter and couldn't be fully lowered because each leaf expanded just enough to allow it. A fireboat was called to spray the bridge with water to cause the leaves to contract enough to allow them to be fully lowered.
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