London motorists to be fined for idling engines: could the same happen with locos?

[Mojo]

Don't Westminster get enough from the congestion charge!?

I don't think the City of Westminster gets anything from the Congestion Charge, which is run by Transport for London.

 

[Crossover]

Had an interesting one with a Voyager at New St last year during engineering works. It had terminated at New St and sat idling. However I think it had been left for the best part of an hour and eventually it inevitably went Eco. In doing so, all that worked were a few lights and the PA (TM used it to apologise and advised we'd have to wait for the driver to restart it) - even the internal and external doors no longer worked!
Driver restarted it but one of the engines decided to not play ball (having been working before) and we proceeded an engine down (5 car so no performance hit, just quiet!)

 

[D6975]

Surely there's a case here for power points every so often along terminal platforms, so units can be "plugged in" for hotel power?

Back in the days of steam heat, Inverness had just such a facility. Steam heat pipes came out of the ground near the bufferstops, so coaches could be preheated in the platform. Not sure where the steam generator was located.
Did any other stations have this faciility?

 

[theageofthetra]

Some of the larger interstate truck stops in the US have a heat/aircon unit with electrical outlets which fit into the truck side window via an overhead cradle. Given the temperature extremes there it makes a lot of sense to use these rather than run a huge diesel engine all night to provide heat/A/C. I think a similar system will eventually , via some sort of EU 'environmental' edict, be introduced in Europe. Not sure of the practicalities but some sort of shore supply for cruise ships may need to be considered as the air polution when four or five large ships are in Palermo or other centrally located major cruise ports is horrendous.