> > 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.


        Please replace the word "break" with "brake" in all instances in the above
message... :( TTYL

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