R36 Combine Coach wrote:That is interesting. It appears PATCO will be the last transportation agency in North America to remain DC traction. I assumed the DC cars were to be rebuilt into AC, as DC systems are now "obsolete". Since the PATCO cars will remain DC, are the GE DC electrical systems being fully remanufactured? Neither GE or Bombardier (successor to Westinghouse transportation division) offer new DC equipment.
Well the cam controls are being chucked in favor of either a thyristor or IBGT. Most likely Vossloh will supply the controls. As far as the motors, they could be rebuilt into brushless. Also to add to the question, could regenetive braking work with a D.C. setup? As far as PATCO being the only D.C. line, the Broad Street Subway is still D.C..