> Another use of high voltage DC may come around soon:  I've heard of
> streetcars which use large banks of low voltage, high capacitance (2000+
> Farad) capacitors in series to store energy when slowing down,
> then use that
> energy to help speed back up.

        I've never heard of that. In Toronto, our streetcars, IIRC, just dump the
power they generate while breaking back into the power line, this allows
other streetcars to use that power. Our subways do the same sort of thing,
they break mostly with the motors, the power generated put into the power
rail so that other subways can use it. Of course "conventional" breaks are
also present, and are used for the final few seconds of stopping. TTYL

PS. We also have a line that uses LIMs, their emergency breaks are great big
electromagnets that clamp down on the running rails! Those things can stop
quite literally on a dime.

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