grr@cbm.UUCP (George Robbins) (01/16/86)
There seems to be some confusion and overgeneralization concerning the
changeover to 60Hz power in the Northeast Corridor.
Pennsylvania RR:
Mostly bought 25 cycle power from utilities who were originally glad
to provide this power for railroads and heavy industries. Nowdays this is 0%
of total volume and the utilities gave notice that they were no longer willing
to sell 25Hz power. Most (all?) of the equipment bought since the 60's has been
specified for 25 or 60Hz.
New Haven RR:
Used to generate some or all of their own power, problems with economy
of scale and obsolete plants. Equipment, same as above.
Reading RR:
Bought some utility power, and some company owned frequency conversion
stations. Obsolete plant, frequent news in during 70-85, Reading commuter lines
running N hours late due to switching failures. Equipment same.
I believe that some of the ex Pennsy, now SEPTA commuter lines have been
converted to 60Hz, having seen old power distribution lines come down. The old
equipment was the railroads biggest problem, since it was not considered to be
practical to upgrade to 60Hz operation. Most of the older MU cars and the GG1's
have since been relagated to backup duties or the scrapyards.
Many of the old Pennsy MU cars were in pretty sorry shape, with serious
rust and mechanical problems. The GG1's may have been indestructable, but were
on the down side of their life cycle, requiring more frequent repair in the face
of increasing labor and parts costs. The sorry cases were being canabalized in
the early 70's.
Most of this information is from my pre-computer days, teenaged prowling
through the various Pennsy and Reading shops, and reading the Railfan press.
For some good references on the equipement and the engineering reasons
for the 25 vs. 60Hz power, try the Pennsy Power books, and also books on
Railway electrification that can still be found in university and some larger
public libraries.
--
George Robbins - now working with, uucp: {ihnp4|seismo|caip}!cbm!grr
but no way officially representing arpa: cbm!grr@seismo.css.GOV
Commodore, Engineering Department fone: 215-431-9255 (only by moonlite)dhf@linus.UUCP (David H. Friedman) (01/17/86)
Another good literature reference is "Electric Traction on the
Pennsylvania Railroad 1895-1968" by Michael Bezilla, published 1981 or so
by Pennsylvania State University Press. This is a book written from the
viewpoint of an academic historian, which analyzes the reasoning behind
many of the fundamental decisions e.g. 25 vs. 60 Hz power frequency, and
why the PRR electrified when it did (and didn't when it might have, else
we would have seen catenary over Horseshoe Curve). As the title suggests,
the story is carried only up to the time of the Penn Central merger, with a
brief epilogue; nothing about E60's or AEM7's. However, there is a good
bit of background to explain the advantages of electrification and the
particular situations in which they applied, as exemplified by the
projects carried out by the PRR during the period considered.