PCC and *Light* Rail Vehicles -- Weights

[John Swindler]

>Jim Holland wrote
>
>	The weight of a standard PCC could easily be rounded to 36,000 pounds.
>
>	The weight of a Boeing LRV could easily be rounded to 72,000 pounds.
>


Concerning car weights, I always found it amusing that the Kawasaki light 
rail cars in Philadelphia are heavier then the Budd-built Market Frankford 
heavy rail/subway cars.

And I bet that all modern light rail cars in this country weigh more then 
the Chicago 6000s.  But maybe that's just an unimportant trivia question.

Instead, I'd be curious to know what design philosophy is causing light rail 
cars to greatly exceed the PCC weight?

-  Is it the adaptation of a higher speed vehicle for light rail operation?  
(ie. a safety/liability issue)

-  Is it the addition of extra "bells & whistles" (as they say in the 
housing and auto businesses) to the vehicle?

-  Is the higher weight found in the car's structure or in the trucks; or 
both?

-  And is the higher car weight even very important?  Maybe not for a p-r-w 
track and subway operation, such as St. Louis.  Maybe it is a consideration 
with a street running operation such as in San Francisco and Broadway in 
Pittsburgh.

Just curious.

John

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