3 ms·
Batteries are no-go. Typical electric locomotive is like 5MW sustained for multiple hours. It wouldn't be able to pull just its own batteries for any reasonable
by lstodd 4y ago
Batteries are no-go. Typical electric locomotive is like 5MW sustained for multiple hours. It wouldn't be able to pull just its own batteries for any reasonable distance.
60 miles of catenary is way cheaper than wasting energy pulling dead weight that batteries are.
- ZeroGravitas 4y agoNote that batteries aren't an all or nothing thing. Just like a Prius, you can start with small batteries that just save you burning fossil fuels (even with the added weight), and help you reclaim energy when braking or going downhill and then add bigger and bigger batteries, as batteries get better, lighter, cheaper, electricity gets cheaper, greener or diesel gets more expensive. It's already started, real battery trains are in operation in niche roles (and nearly always have been since before lithium ion) but the process will accelerate and expand over time. They complement electrification of lines, they don't compete with them as you can use one or the other based on which works best for a particular stretch of track, or task.