Post by Alexis Kasperavičius on Apr 5, 2010 8:52:49 GMT -8
Took a quick trip to Dresden (Germany) over the weekend and thought you would be interested in seeing how they do streetcars over here.
Coming up to a streetcar crossing you will see no lights, no bells, no gates. Just a row of poles.
If people need to cross, they check both ways and if it's clear, they cross.
If someone is in the street the operator can ring a bell (ding ding - like a trolley, constant ring - like a school bell,
or sound a horn) The streetcars themselves are very quiet. Quieter than a bus and very smooth running.
This is a typical stop in street running mode.
...and without a train. Note HOW LOW the trains are! No expensive raised platforms here. It's just a standard curb.
In private Right-Of-Way there are "stations" which are also low to the ground. The trains move at a good clip through these areas - about 35 MPH.
As you can see, the Germans are not as fond of concrete as we seem to be. Either grass (above) stonework as here, or ballast stones.
...and of course there are delays sometimes. They still allow horse drawn carriages on the street and in a situation like this, the horse carriage sets the pace.
Coming up to a streetcar crossing you will see no lights, no bells, no gates. Just a row of poles.
If people need to cross, they check both ways and if it's clear, they cross.
If someone is in the street the operator can ring a bell (ding ding - like a trolley, constant ring - like a school bell,
or sound a horn) The streetcars themselves are very quiet. Quieter than a bus and very smooth running.
This is a typical stop in street running mode.
...and without a train. Note HOW LOW the trains are! No expensive raised platforms here. It's just a standard curb.
In private Right-Of-Way there are "stations" which are also low to the ground. The trains move at a good clip through these areas - about 35 MPH.
As you can see, the Germans are not as fond of concrete as we seem to be. Either grass (above) stonework as here, or ballast stones.
...and of course there are delays sometimes. They still allow horse drawn carriages on the street and in a situation like this, the horse carriage sets the pace.