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Yertis
11,700 posts
135 months
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The problems in this regard can be traced to the Romans, and their daft insistence on setting the wheels on their chariots 4'8.5" apart. If we'd standardised on Brunel's enormous gauge we wouldn't have these problems. Although the trainswould look odd.
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Simpo Two
54,212 posts
134 months
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I thought the gauge came from colliery trams?
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davepoth
19,878 posts
68 months
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It did; the Roman thing is only on the basis that due to the size of a horse the axle width of a cart will always be somewhere around 1.5m.
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IanMorewood
2,349 posts
117 months
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eccles said: The overhead lines seem to be quite 'fragile' and almost daily on travel reports you hear of delays due to problems with the overhead lines. 3.142keys having stolen the wire or smashed up a substation for a bit of copper more often than not.
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IanMorewood
2,349 posts
117 months
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Dr Banjo said: The IC125's are being replaced by the dual mode Hitachi Super Express, capable of 140mph  . Yep and guess what East Midlands Trains that runs down the midland mainline managed a new speed record only a week ago .....125mph over an eight mile stretch of the line, the rest simply is not upto standard (or wasn't last time I took the train to London).
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snowdude2910
584 posts
33 months
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Maybe the new stuff is  proof?
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Apache
38,242 posts
153 months
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IanMorewood said: Dr Banjo said: The IC125's are being replaced by the dual mode Hitachi Super Express, capable of 140mph . Yep and guess what East Midlands Trains that runs down the midland mainline managed a new speed record only a week ago .....125mph over an eight mile stretch of the line, the rest simply is not upto standard (or wasn't last time I took the train to London). I was involved in the introduction of the Meridian fleet, they can go as fast as a Hitachi Super Express all day long  As has been said, the rolling stock aint the problem
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uk_vette
2,764 posts
73 months
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GrahamG said: Podie said: First to market is rarely the market leader.
The UK has one of the largest mixed traffic networks in the world. And one of the busiest and most intensively used BTW - Fans of Chinese High Speed Trains might want to put that very phrase through Google - I'd rather be a bit slower than a lot deader! . Hi Graham, Beijing subway is amazing. http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2012-04/29/cont...8,39 million riders / day. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_UndergroundLondon 3,4 million riders / day Never see any passenger run to catch a subway train. The next one could be arriving within a minute. I have seen it where the tail lights of one, have barley dissapeared into the darkness, when the following trains lights are heading into the station. . These are taken from line 1 of 15 lines.  .  (see pusher in blue uniform) .  vette
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hidetheelephants
5,589 posts
62 months
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Simpo Two said: I thought the gauge came from colliery trams? Sort of; AIUI 4'8"and a little bit approximately equals the width of 2 horse's arses. Or so I've read. Electric traction is lighter, more reliable, accelerates faster, no local exhaust fumes, no fuel tanks to immolate passengers in a crash, quieter, less vibration, and more efficient. Apart from that it's rubbish.
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JB!
3,845 posts
49 months
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It may also provide a few jobs, y'know, to contribute to the massive financial black hole we live in?
I'd rather travel on an electric train than a diesel one, bloody hate the EMT stock, I always end up sat above a bloody engine!
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Dr Banjo
301 posts
18 months
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Simpo Two
54,212 posts
134 months
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JB! said: It may also provide a few jobs, y'know, to contribute to the massive financial black hole we live in? Well, it would move money from some people to other people - but it won't do anything for the budget defecit that I can see. The only way out of that is to export, or cut spending, or both.
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LotusOmega375D
2,111 posts
22 months
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IanMorewood said: Yep and guess what East Midlands Trains that runs down the midland mainline managed a new speed record only a week ago .....125mph over an eight mile stretch of the line, the rest simply is not upto standard (or wasn't last time I took the train to London). Gee-wizz. Can human-beings even breathe at that sort of velocity? I used to use live a short walk from the Midland Mainline as a kid. I remember seeing the old HST prototype and Gas Turbine APT-E on test runs. I am sure they would manage that speed on the track in the 1970s. I then used the line myself daily for 7 years. When the production HST 125s eventually started replacing the Peaks in the 1980s, they did reduce journey times (not by much, though due to the stop-start nature of the line). The down-sides were that they were regularly breaking down, so you'd get them crawling along on one motor and they were poor in the winter. Nevertheless by far the biggest failing was the lack of capacity. We went from 10 Mark 1 or Mark 2 carriages behind a 45 or 47, to the 7 Mark 3's of a 125 of which 2 were First Class and a third was a buffet car. This fault has never been properly rectified and yet overcrowding has just got worse. Whatever the future brings for the Midland Mainline, please let us get back to a minimum of 10 carriages per train, even if it is just pulled by a regular locomotive.
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doogz
18,668 posts
56 months
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Apache said: Dr Banjo said: Same here, I have never quite understood it. The reasons touted are:- Diesel is expensive Electric is greener (yeah where is that juice coming from) Electric trains are lighter so less maintenance Electric trains are faster I think the holy grail of high speed trains was delivered with the IC125. Fast, built in redundancy, no need to wait for overhead f king cables to be fixed etc etc just $0.02  Almost forgot.. rant on. Travelling from Bham to london on one of those Pendolino things. Bloody cramped and claustrophobic. Got on 125 at Paddington... large carriage absolute bliss. Fast and comfortable to Bath. with regard to the lighter bit, that's actually a disadvantage due to reduced traction and the inability for the lighter stuff to deal with leaf mulch. Don't see how it reduces maintenance though The traction of a lighter, electric train, is still much better, as there are many more driven wheels. Electric motors are usually fitted to every carriage, as opposed to just the loco in a diesel outfit. And electric is greener. Power stations are much more efficient than train engines.
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cj_eds
1,567 posts
90 months
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Was browsing the local paper at the weekend at the in-laws and the front page story was a local MP berating the decision to not electrify one of the lines around Stirling. The one in question being a perfectly usable, generally problem free one that runs a really good service as it is IMHO. Apparently it's far more important having electric trains than it is a wider A9 according to this MP. A few commuters being home a little bit quicker each night is more important than keeping a few other people alive on a crap single carriageway road. Personally I'd have thought it's better people weren't dying. Obviously I'd make a crap MP.
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Apache
38,242 posts
153 months
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doogz said: The traction of a lighter, electric train, is still much better, as there are many more driven wheels. Electric motors are usually fitted to every carriage, as opposed to just the loco in a diesel outfit.
And electric is greener. Power stations are much more efficient than train engines. Its nothing to do with traction in this case, its all about the ability to crush the mulch. Theres loads on the web about it
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doogz
18,668 posts
56 months
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Apache said: Its nothing to do with traction in this case, its all about the ability to crush the mulch. Theres loads on the web about it I was thrown by your statement "with regard to the lighter bit, that's actually a disadvantage due to reduced traction" Whatever you say though.
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Podie
38,379 posts
144 months
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doogz said: Apache said: Its nothing to do with traction in this case, its all about the ability to crush the mulch. Theres loads on the web about it I was thrown by your statement "with regard to the lighter bit, that's actually a disadvantage due to reduced traction" Whatever you say though. It's steel on steel, so weight does help get traction from a standing start. A lot of drivers prefer the older heavier trains as a result. Many also complain that modern brakes mean that wheels "snatch" and it's easier to lose traction.
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Use Psychology
9,793 posts
61 months
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doing skids on a bike is ace. it must be awesome fun in a train.
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Podie
38,379 posts
144 months
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Use Psychology said: doing skids on a bike ace. it must be awesome fun in a train. 
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