I've read that Bad Bentheim (near the Dutch/German border) has voltage switchable catenary.
I'm curious about how that actually works (or, if it's not the case any more in this world of multi-voltage locomotives, how it used to work).
Does anyone know?
I.e. Who switches the voltage whan appropriate (signaller? big button on the platform?), and how do the drivers know when the voltage is appropriate for their locomotive?
It seems as there is the potential (excuse the inadvertent pun) for bad things to happen if someone gets it wrong.
It's quite likely I've been through a station like this at some point without being aware of what was going on, but the only times I've knowingly been across voltage changes have been with multi-voltage engines/units, or one one occasion in Croatia where the split seemed to be half way down the station and incoming locomotives coasted in with the replacement locomotive giving it a shove back into its own territory before coupling on to the train.
I'm curious about how that actually works (or, if it's not the case any more in this world of multi-voltage locomotives, how it used to work).
Does anyone know?
I.e. Who switches the voltage whan appropriate (signaller? big button on the platform?), and how do the drivers know when the voltage is appropriate for their locomotive?
It seems as there is the potential (excuse the inadvertent pun) for bad things to happen if someone gets it wrong.
It's quite likely I've been through a station like this at some point without being aware of what was going on, but the only times I've knowingly been across voltage changes have been with multi-voltage engines/units, or one one occasion in Croatia where the split seemed to be half way down the station and incoming locomotives coasted in with the replacement locomotive giving it a shove back into its own territory before coupling on to the train.