Xref: utzoo rec.railroad:2924 tor.general:1074
Newsgroups: rec.railroad,tor.general
Path: utzoo!sq!msb
From: msb@sq.sq.com (Mark Brader)
Subject: Re: Toronto Transit Commission reprieves PCC streetcars
Message-ID: <1989Aug6.015441.27261@sq.sq.com>
Followup-To: rec.railroad
Reply-To: msb@sq.com (Mark Brader)
Organization: SoftQuad Inc., Toronto
References: <1989Aug5.050846.431@sq.sq.com>
Date: Sun, 6 Aug 89 01:54:41 GMT

Again this is posted to tor.general and rec.railroad with followups directed
to the latter.  (Hey, Followup-To lines are only advisory...)

Recently I wrote of Toronto's CLRV streetcars:
> They have had braking problems ...

I didn't know it at the time, but this had apparently been dramatically
demonstrated not 24 hours before I posted the article.  If the driver's
assertions are accurate and accurately reported, a CLRV car suffered a
failure of *all three* braking systems, ran downhill backwards, and
collided with a trolleybus, which was pushed sideways into an automobile.
The trolleybus was a write-off, but all injuries were minor.

The newspaper report I saw referred to the car "running off the rails",
but as nothing else was said about that, I took it that either they used
the words as a metaphor for "out of control", or that it was derailed
by the collision itself or else on the sharp curve within the intersection
immediately before the collision.  Judging from the damage pictured, the
speed could not have been great; I'm only posting this at all because of
the coincidence of timing with my earlier message.  (Hmm, just like the
newspapers who report every little yard derailment for a few days after
a major rail accident...)

Nothing was said, either, about why the driver could not have applied
power to stop the car from rolling back.  However, it would obviously
be difficult to come to a stop safely after doing so.

I also wrote that the rebuilt PCC cars
> lose their old paint scheme

which I am informed is not true in every case.


-- 
Mark Brader		    "Inventions reached their limit long ago,
SoftQuad Inc., Toronto	     and I see no hope for further development."
utzoo!sq!msb, msb@sq.com		-- Julius Frontinus, 1st century A.D.

This article is in the public domain.