Re: Three CityRail questions

[Ben Munro <sporologist@yahoo.com>]

Dave Proctor wrote:
> 
> "Bradley Torr" <truenorth@one.net.au.NOSPAM> wrote in message
> 3a9b50f5_1@news01.one.net.au">news:3a9b50f5_1@news01.one.net.au...
> > (1) Why are many down trains on the Bankstown line that are scheduled to
> > proceed to the City Circle via Lidcombe timetabled to stand at Bankstown
> > station for around twelve minutes, while trains scheduled to proceed to
> > Liverpool don't have such a lengthy standing time?
> 
> Those doing the loop are generally locked into a circular route - and as the
> Bankstown Circle takes just under two hours, the twelve minute waiting time
> is there so as to put the train onto a regular interval service (every 30
> minutes, I believe).

The standing time at Bankstown also allows the train to recover from
delays. Some trains stand at Strathfield instead of Bankstown, but most
don't.
 
> > (2) At Parramatta station, is there a pattern to which train uses which
> > platforms, e.g. which down trains use Platform 2 and which use Platform 4;
> > and which up trains use Platform 1 and which use Platform 3? Or is it
> > random?
> 
> No pattern, apart from drug-links using 3/4. Blue Mountains services
> generally use 1/2 though.

I think trains that use the main line stop at 1/2, and trains using the
suburban line stop at 3/4. Is this correct?
 
> > (3) Why is it that, while travelling along in a train (particularly the
> > pre-Tangara sets), ocasionally most of the lights and the air conditioning
> > will cut out for a short period, and then suddenly start back up again?
> 
> An air-gap in the o/h wiring - it is a section insulator, used so that they
> can switch off the power in one part of the OHLE without affecting other
> lines (used for maintenance purposes) - this is mainly when the pantograph
> hits one of them. You can see them in the OHLE, mainly near junctions.
> 
> Dave