Re: Overhead power lines

["Rod Gayford" <rjaygee@smartchat.net.au>]

I would have thought the main reason was to increase the current carrying
capacity. On certain sections of uphill track they even use twin conducting
cables ( the wire at the top that does not contact the panatgraph). On the
blue mountains they only use a single contact wire but have a strange
arrangement of a second conductor strung just above the contact wire. It
seems to me that the newer system is more economical and effective. I have
also noticed that the current carrying wire north of Hornsby is very thick
indeed.
Cheers
Rod Gayford

"Ronald BESDANSKY" <ronbest@bigpond.com> wrote in message
25Wk4.2561$VJ1.5015@newsfeeds.bigpond.com">news:25Wk4.2561$VJ1.5015@newsfeeds.bigpond.com...
> The older parts of the system use a single "contact wire". The newer
parts,
> beginning, I think, with the Eastern Suburbs line, use two, to spread out
> the contact area with the pantograph, and/or improve the behaviour of the
> overhead by having two thin wires instead of one thicker one. You will
> notice that the catenary over the Blue Mountains uses two CATENARY wires,
to
> improve the current-carrying capacity on the steeply-graded section.
>
> --
> Rgds
>
> Ron BESDANSKY
> Lourie Smit <lsmit@ozemail.com.au> wrote in message
> nLRk4.14117$3b6.59308@ozemail.com.au">news:nLRk4.14117$3b6.59308@ozemail.com.au...
> > The following question appeared on the Australia Transport Discussion
> Board
> > (English Version). As there do not appear to be too many railway people
> > looking at that, I thought I would repeat it here. It was posted by
Andrew
> > on Saturday 29/1/2000.
> >
> > "Why do some parts of the cityrail network have only one wire touching
the
> > pantograph on the train and some parts have two.?"
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
>