How our streetcars will combat the ice and snow
Photo Courtesy of Tom Gerend
I tout rail transit as the “all-weather mode” – that is, a mobility option that passengers can rely on no matter what the weather. Just like how Herodotus in The Histories described the courier service of the ancient Persian Empire, “neither by snow nor rain nor heat nor darkness from accomplishing their appointed course with all speed.”
The high reliability stems from the robust system, it consists of hefty vehicles operating with steel wheels on steel rails. Streetcars can make it through some of the worst conditions on the streets. The two main priorities during inclement weather are keeping the cars running through ice and snow and getting passengers safely to and from the rail stops.
Winter Light Rail Operations in Denver
Reliability on the Rails
A common question that I get is how do we keep the trains running in the ice and snow? The easy answer is to continue running the trains through the bad conditions: this will keep snow and ice off the rails and overhead wires (known as the Overhead Contact System or OCS). This is the main solution, although each specific winter storm requires a different response. Of course, in cases of an extremely hazardous storms, service will be reduced until conditions are better.
Rain or sleet will cause some slick conditions on the rails, especially starting from a stop uphill. Our vehicles will be equipped with automatic sanders, which will release a small amount of sand on the rail just in front of the wheel when a train begins to slip. There are sand boxes located above the wheels, just under the seats.
Streetcar vehicles will come equipped with heaters on the pantographs – the mechanism above the car that transfers power from the overhead wire to the car. It is especially important for an off-wire system like we are building in Omaha to have heated pantographs, as ice could otherwise develop on these mechanisms when they are not connected to a wire. Ice can form on the OCS when the temperature is at or below 34 degrees. During ice storms, streetcars must run every 15-20 minutes to keep the OCS clear and operational.
Similar to the wires, by running cars through storms, the rails should largely remain clear of snow and ice. But what happens when the cars are not running overnight, and a sudden storm comes through? Or if snow accumulates faster than the cars can clear through the elements? That is when it is essential to have morning sweep trains and a snowplow plan. Morning sweep trains are the first train in each direction of the morning. Additional running time is scheduled for these trains so that they can operate slower to inspect the wire and track. In the case of running after a snowstorm, this will give more time for the heaters on the pantograph to act as ice cutters and remove the ice from the wires.
A proper snowplow plan includes two things:
- Do not run plows with the blades down perpendicular to the tracks
- Make sure that snow is removed from the stop locations, without dumping it on the tracks
The City of Omaha manages the plowing of snow and ice from roadways and streets, which will include those on the streetcar route. The streetcar operations and maintenance team will be responsible for clearing all streetcar platforms, shelters and trackways of snow and ice. Together, the City of Omaha and the streetcar team will work together to maintain a clear path for the streetcar to stay safe and on schedule.
The City of Omaha has more information on plow operations on the Public works website and there is also an interactive snow plow tracker.
The track switches (located at 39th & Farnam, Farnam & Turner, and at the maintenance facility yard) are equipped with underground heaters to keep the mechanisms warm and pliable. At times, the streetcars will perform additional sweeper runs during non-service hours to keep the track and OCS clear of snow and ice. As this typically occurs during the off hours, these streetcars will not pick up passengers during this time. The streetcar will also utilize a sweeper with a big brush to clear accumulating snow from the track. The sweeper, which are also used on some streets now, have large brushes to help remove snow from tricky spots such as the “flangeways” (the gap inside the rails where the wheel flanges run) so that streetcars do not derail.
Kansas City’s Track Sweeper, “Brushy McBrushface
Passenger Safety at the Stops
If the trains can keep running through ice and snow, then how do we get the passengers on and off the cars safely? Additional care must be taken to keep cars clean inside, especially with the extra water, ice, and snow that is tracked in by passengers. Streetcar stops will have minimal shelter structures to help keep passengers dry and warm during winter weather storms. The shelters are designed with the intention that passengers should not be waiting long at the stops with the high frequency of service.
Kansas City Streetcar Stop After a Recent Snowstorm – Omaha Stops Will Be Similar to These
Photo Courtesy of Tom Gerend
As mentioned earlier, the streetcar team will coordinate with the City of Omaha to make sure that plowing at stops does not conflict with the plowing of streets. The clearing of snow will focus on the platform area and include clearing access to the sidewalks nearby so that passengers can get to and from the stops safely (most sidewalks will be directly adjacent to the stop platform). In advance of ice or snow events, the streetcar team will pre-treat trackways and platforms with a calcium chloride and magnesium chloride blend.
Denver Light Rail Station During a Late Spring Snowstorm
The primary goal of dealing with winter weather events is to keep the operations running so that our transit service is as similar to normal conditions as possible. This is not only important for people to rely on transit service, but also for people who still want to get outside and experience all that Omaha’s urban core has to offer, even during the winter months.
Eric Miller is the Streetcar Operations Manager for the City of Omaha. Erik has a 21-year career in the transit industry that includes work in both the private and public sectors and work on planning and implementing bus and rail projects for transit agencies all across the country.