[cplchanb]

I've watched videos of the Clarkson express travelling through Mimico, and it doesn't seem to travel as fast as these trains do. I could be wrong.


Which is exactly why I've never been a fan of packing more stations/ stops on existing lines.

I guess one thing to note is that GO consists are twice the length to you would need a lot more power to propel the trains at those speeds.
or it could just be limited to speed limits due to poor track suitability.

 

[Bojaxs]

I guess one thing to note is that GO consists are twice the length to you would need a lot more power to propel the trains at those speeds.
or it could just be limited to speed limits due to poor track suitability.

MARC runs MP36's, which yes, would travel slower if they were pulling a 12 car consist. But back in the Dalton McGuinty days, GO transit specifically asked the manufacturer for locomotives with more powerful engines to help move the 12 car consist. They got MP40's. The newest locomotives they have are the MP54's which are even more powerful. 12 car consists should be no issue for the newest locomotives.

Yeah, my guess is the tracks are not suitable for trains to travel 125mp/h. The clip I posted, that's the track the Acela runs on.

 

[drum118]

I guess one thing to note is that GO consists are twice the length to you would need a lot more power to propel the trains at those speeds.
or it could just be limited to speed limits due to poor track suitability.

I have yet to see a commuter train longer than 8 cars using diesel power and haven't been to the west coast in decades.. MARC trains are 3 cars up with max being 5 and can't recall what Chicago max lengths were. Nashville are 2 cars long. Boston is 3-8 coaches

In my travel this summer, saw no system that could use any GO coaches and if so, very small numbers.

 

[cplchanb]

MARC runs MP36's, which yes, would travel slower if they were pulling a 12 car consist. But Metrolinx specifically asked the manufacturer for locomotives with more powerful engines to help move the 12 car consist. They got MP40's. The newest locomotives they have are the MP54's which are even more powerful. 12 car consists should be no issue for the newest locomotives.

Yeah, my guess is the tracks are not suitable for trains to travel 125mp/h. The clip I posted, that's the track the Acela runs on.

yea but most of the trains are still MP40s and they only have 400 more HP for double the weight...
i guess even for MP54s can 50% more power overcome 100% more mass to pull?

 

[crs1026]

Yes, I do realise it's the NE corridor. I saw the Acela train in the video. I think trains travelling at such a speed probably isn't justifiable for you, but I'm sure there's plenty people in the GTA who would love to see our trains travel faster.

Because they need a thrill? Or because it gets them somewhere faster? You need to calculate how much time a GO train would save if it did accelerate further before beginning to brake. The math is not supportive of your argument. Big dollars in track and fuel costs, versus a few seconds shaved off the timings.

For balance, I am a bit surprised at how low the track speed limit is on some GO lines.... but I have seen the grid that tells engineers what speed to coast from after leaving each stop. The grid is more conservative than the track construction, and that's a deliberate calculation based on time versus fuel expense. the track isn't the limiting factor.

Please... you sound like my coworker explaining to me why he never drives 120km/h in the left lane. Time is money.

Not a good comparison. You are asking why we don't engineer and build highways to a higher standard. The answer - it costs a lot of money, and you can already do 120 fairly safely, if you choose to. And if your gas consumption were in the same range as a MP40, you might reconsider the choice.

- Paul