LIRR third rail power supply

dukeoq wrote:

One of One-Sixty wrote:It amazing, when I am out at NASSAU I see the maintance guys actually standing on top the third rail all the time. I just sit and wonder sometimes.

Yes it is live cause a train would go by moments before or after.

Yes!! It can be done--V-E-R-Y C-A-R-E-F-U-L-Y.
I'm sure they don't step up to it, leaving one foot on the ground with one on the rail. Standing both feet on the rail will not comlete the circuit.

One-sixty, don't try it at home---or anyplace else, for that matter.

Trust me you would never find me doing anything of the sorts, as Pennsy said, they become lax with their surroundings, one day its gonnabit them in their ass.

It's Physics 101, gents: the body is a rather poor conductor on its own,

Not quite true.

At low voltages (under about 200) the human body has a fairly low resistance to electricity. Hence, little current flow (which is what actually kills).

However, at voltages above about 200 the body starts to undergo ionization which drastically reduces the resistance to current flow. Hence, you get big current flow resulting in cessation of various body functions.

One reason why the US standard of 110 volts is somewhat safer than the European standard of 220.

Yes, you can safely stand on the third rail (or for that matter, hang from high tension wires). The big key is to not provide any sort of a path to ground. That's why you can see birds on high tension lines without them suffering any adverse reactions. The problem is that it is so easy to provide that path to ground. And then you're toast. Literally!

Don't take chances... expect the safety equipment to fail and behave accordingly.

Hi All,

While the East coast still likes 600 vdc, and in some applications has switched to 750 vdc, the West coast seems to have standardized on 750 vdc. In the Los Angeles area, the Red Line, Blue Line, Green Line, and now the Gold Line, all run on 750 vdc. And we don't have to worry about ice and snow.

is the third rail system used on the lirr similar to the one used in the nyc subway?

Yes, AND no. The BRT/BMT third rail sits closer to the running rail IIRC. When the LIRR and BRT had the Chestnut Street Connection deal going on, I believe the MP-41 cars could not immediately enter upon the BRT Jamaica Line trackage as the shoe beams had to be manually adjusted for the height differences.

Now, here's the catch: on the other hand the IRT third rail is identical to the LIRR third rail position because there was originally planned to be connections between the two. And things are complicated because even though the MP-41 was built to the dimensions of the IRT system, the couplers were NOT compatible with those of the IRT Gibbs cars. The Brooklyn EL cars coupled well with the MP-41's hence their sharing of operations.

scopelliti Writes

"you can see birds on high tension lines without them suffering any adverse reactions. The problem is that it is so easy to provide that path to ground. And then you're toast. Literally!

Don't take chances... expect the safety equipment to fail and behave accordingly."

Sometimes those birds didn't even make it.
Years ago, while working the LIRR hump at Long Island City, oppisite the Sunnyside engine house, we could see the pidgeons walking sideways along the wires.
Every now and then we would hear a loud BOOM and look up to see a shower of feathers coming down from under the insulator where the bird had stepped across on his journey to the other side.
Of course, when that happened, ground was made and it sure ruined his day.