should electric trains have aux. power supplies??

[henry6]

No. But roads should have system design which would allow lines jumped from district to district, zone to zone, and alternative supply sources. At one time the Pennsylvania could feed full power from Wilmington DE to Sunnyside with no virtual loss when needed! Today's phase gap on NJT is a killer when one zone goes down for any reason, it backs up the whole system. But, not just engines and mu trains need auxilairy back up. Signal and communication systems need auxiiiary batteries and generators, as do dispatachers offices and control points. Then you can get a dielsel out there and move trains. There is no back up in the minds of management today...until after the fact, then the say it can't happen again and it will happen again, etc.

[henry6]

No. But roads should have system design which would allow lines jumped from district to district, zone to zone, and alternative supply sources. At one time the Pennsylvania could feed full power from Wilmington DE to Sunnyside with no virtual loss when needed! Today's phase gap on NJT is a killer when one zone goes down for any reason, it backs up the whole system. But, not just engines and mu trains need auxilairy back up. Signal and communication systems need auxiiiary batteries and generators, as do dispatachers offices and control points. Then you can get a dielsel out there and move trains. There is no back up in the minds of management today...until after the fact, then the say it can't happen again and it will happen again, etc.

[RudyRockvilleMD]

At first glance a backup APU on an electric locomotive may be a good idea, but then how frequently would it be necessary to use it? How frequently have the overhead catenary or the third rail electric power transmission systems gone down, and for how long?

To answer another reply. The New Haven's FL 9's were primarily diesel electric locomotives where the diesel engines were the prime movers that turned the generators. These locomotives were equipped with third rail shoes to run in the tunnel under Park Avenue to enter Grand Central Terminal.

[RudyRockvilleMD]

At first glance a backup APU on an electric locomotive may be a good idea, but then how frequently would it be necessary to use it? How frequently have the overhead catenary or the third rail electric power transmission systems gone down, and for how long?

To answer another reply. The New Haven's FL 9's were primarily diesel electric locomotives where the diesel engines were the prime movers that turned the generators. These locomotives were equipped with third rail shoes to run in the tunnel under Park Avenue to enter Grand Central Terminal.

[Anonymous]

no, i just mean having a small generator of some type that can supply temporary power for lights and A/C or for moving the train a short distance.

[Anonymous]

no, i just mean having a small generator of some type that can supply temporary power for lights and A/C or for moving the train a short distance.

[Anonymous]

Do you mean more dual-mode locomotives (like DE-30ACs or P32AC-DM)?
I think electric traction has little point if it has to carry a diesel engine anyway.

Maybe dual modes should be run at maximum power only to energize the third rail (and keep commuter MU-trains running)

[Anonymous]

Do you mean more dual-mode locomotives (like DE-30ACs or P32AC-DM)?
I think electric traction has little point if it has to carry a diesel engine anyway.

Maybe dual modes should be run at maximum power only to energize the third rail (and keep commuter MU-trains running)

[JoeKoh]

I think they better make some more.
stay safe
Joe

[JoeKoh]

I think they better make some more.
stay safe
Joe

[emdgp92]

EMD already did it with their (now gone) FL9 cab units. I wonder if they all were pulled from storage.

Perhaps some type of storage battery system could be used?

[emdgp92]

EMD already did it with their (now gone) FL9 cab units. I wonder if they all were pulled from storage.

Perhaps some type of storage battery system could be used?

[Anonymous]

while watching the fun on the east coast last week i got to thinking....it would be a great idea to add auxillary diesel power supplies to electric passenger trains.

i was thinking of something along the line of a small generator that could supply power to the lights and air conditioning for several hours, or maybe something larger that supplies just enough power to move the train along to the next station.

what do y'all think?

[Anonymous]

while watching the fun on the east coast last week i got to thinking....it would be a great idea to add auxillary diesel power supplies to electric passenger trains.

i was thinking of something along the line of a small generator that could supply power to the lights and air conditioning for several hours, or maybe something larger that supplies just enough power to move the train along to the next station.

what do y'all think?