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From: dennis@CSNET-SH.ARPA (Dennis Rockwell)
Newsgroups: net.railroad
Subject: Re: combination of third rail and overhead power
Message-ID: <1434@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 9-Jan-86 22:08:06 EST
Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.1434
Posted: Thu Jan  9 22:08:06 1986
Date-Received: Mon, 13-Jan-86 04:42:45 EST
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	From: Christopher Byrnes <cb@mitre-bedford.ARPA>
	Date: 09 Jan 86 08:28:54 EST (Thu)
	Subject: Re: combination of third rail and overhead power

	  I believe that the MBTA's Blue Line uses both third rail (in the
	tunnel under Boston Harbor) and overhead wire for power.

Thanks!  I've been wondering why the switch was made.  The four stations in
downtown Boston are third rail, the switch is made at Maverick (in East
Boston, on the other side of the harbor), and the rest of the line north and
eastward (past the airport, the beach, and the racetrack) runs under wire.

Also, Boston's Green Line is essentially a buried (in the denser portions
of the city) streetcar line, now running a few PCC cars (trolley poles) as
well as Boeing LRVs (half-pantographs), the same cars used in parts of San
Francisco.  There is an LRV in the shops with trolley poles that was used
for evaluation.  The other two rapid transit lines (Red and Orange) use
third rail exclusively.  Red, Orange, and Blue lines all use reasonably
normal-looking subway cars, although all three are different (the Red Line
uses two different types itself).

For those interested in arcana, an MBTA employee has restored an old
(wooden!) streetcar and occasionally runs it around the Green Line for
fantrips.  He told me that he sometimes runs it on old street trackage,
using one wire from the trackless trolley overhead!

Dennis