Re: Sydney Light Rail Slips Up!

[matthew@mail.usyd.edu.au (Matthew Geier)]

In article <36e44991.0@newshost.pcug.org.au>,
David Bennetts <davibenn@pcug.org.au> wrote:
>According to this morning's Sydney Morning Herald, a light rail vehicle was
>making heavy weather of making the grade up to Central Railway concourse,
>with its wheels continually slipping on the wet rails, and passengers
>bailing out to perambulate up the hill at a faster rate.

 I watched a tram one night several months ago take 15 minutes to get
up the ramp. It came up in short bursts, I assume some sort of protection
system kept shutting the traction power down on them. (Overspeed ?)

>Whatever happened to sand, isn't it considered modern enough to fit sanding
>equipment to a light rail vehicle?

 Last time I walked the ramp, besides rail burns from spinning wheels,
there was a lot of sand on the rails. Some one had been sanding the
track.


 Some of their problem may be the ATC system. They are limited to 20Kph
and with the wheels spinning... ( What axle does the system measure to
determine real track speed ?. Being able to take a run at the ramp
would help :-)