Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site brl-tgr.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!gamma!epsilon!zeta!sabre!petrus!bellcore!decvax!genrad!panda!talcott!harvard!seismo!brl-tgr!tgr!dennis@CSNET-SH.ARPA From: dennis@CSNET-SH.ARPA (Dennis Rockwell) Newsgroups: net.railroad Subject: Re: subways / European rail (really turnstiles) Message-ID: <1545@brl-tgr.ARPA> Date: Mon, 13-Jan-86 13:21:18 EST Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.1545 Posted: Mon Jan 13 13:21:18 1986 Date-Received: Wed, 15-Jan-86 08:14:50 EST Sender: news@brl-tgr.ARPA Lines: 28 From: "J.S.Jonas" Date: 8 Jan 86 17:45:58 GMT Subject: Re: subways / European rail (really turnstiles) I find it reassuring to have an electrified line near me, since it would be very hard to pull down and abandon. It should be in service for a loooong time. Welll... I'm an fan of electrics, and I really hated to see this, but Conrail pulled down the overhead leading to the Potomac Yard from the Corridor (Washington D.C. area) last year, marking the final demise of electric freight in this country. This was apparently precipitated by a storm that downed part of the catenary sometime in 1984 (?). If Amtrak goes under, who knows what will happen to the Corridor? The maintenance costs are immense, not only for the catenary, but for maintaining 120 MPH track. Of course, maybe other countries don't pull freights with electrics; the only freight I saw during a long day of trainwatching in Stockholm last year was diesel. It was the only diesel locomotive I saw, although the obviously freight-only sidings were not electrified. One passenger train was pulled by something that resembled a Little Joe, but the rest were all either pulled by Rc[12345]s (the AEM7 is based on the Rc4), or were MUs (commuter runs). There was even a DB coach in one of the trains! Actually, there was an electric freight, but it was a work train (ballast, mostly) in the subway. Anybody interested in the Stockholm subway? Dennis