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Did you read the report[1] in the page that you linked? On p. 2, it explains that the BART cars were specifically designed to be lighter weight than normal rai
by adrianmonk 3y ago
Did you read the report[1] in the page that you linked?
On p. 2, it explains that the BART cars were specifically designed to be lighter weight than normal rail cars in order to minimize the energy required to rapidly accelerate to 80 miles/hour (129 km/hour). The lighter weight makes them less stable in crosswinds.
On p. 13, there's a short cost analysis, and their conclusion is it will save them $2 million overall because it will cost additional money to build but will save even more money on energy.
So it's a different trade-off. They gave up stability to gain energy efficiency. So they then did something to regain the lost stability.
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[1] https://www.bart.gov/sites/default/files/docs/BART%20Stability%20Study%20Compressed_0.pdf https://www.bart.gov/sites/default/files/docs/BART%20Stabili...
- froh 3y agosure I read it. however if that concept of ultra lightweight cars was sustainable, more nations would do it, wouldn't you think? what's done instead is recuperation of break energy as electricity. the concepts looked good on paper but they didn't work out as well in practice.