Restoring Power to a Vast Transportation System After a Substation Failure

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) has a 650 volt direct current (dc) traction power system for its heavy rail and subway-surface trolley systems. While SEPTA’s forces have done an excellent job at keeping the system maintained and operational, component failures can and do occur with catastrophic results. SEPTA’s Market Street Substation provides 650V dc power to the Market Frankford Subway Elevated (MFSE) line and Subway-Surface trolley system. The Market Street Substation is an essential part of the SEPTA system with nearly 10,000 MWh of electrical energy flowing through the system each year with a peak power level of nearly 2.6 MW. In March 2011, the SEPTA system experienced a major component failure at this substation. The failure destroyed five dc circuit breakers, the remote terminal unit (RTU) and many control cables within the substation. The resulting power outage stopped service on the MFSE line and five different subway-surface trolley lines. The power needed to be restored but the damage was extensive. The breakers that failed are no longer manufactured. Replacement parts are no longer available. In the short term, power needed to be restored to the MFSE and subway-surface trolley lines to keep passengers moving. For the long term, at a minimum, a new breaker lineup was needed. In this paper, an explanation will be provided of how the traction power for the MFSE and trolley lines was returned to service in just twenty-four hours. In addition an explanation of the logistics and hurdles of finding and delivering breakers from a retired substation and the technical issues with modifying, testing, installing and commissioning these breakers is discussed. This paper will explain the process and problems that resulted in a restoration of normal substation service in February 2012.

• Record URL:
  • http://www.apta.com/mc/rail/previous/2013/papers/Papers/BeznerS-MontvydasD.-Restoring-Power-To-A-Vast-Transportation-System-After-A-Substation-Failure.pdf
• 
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Abstract used with permission from American Public Transportation Association.
• Corporate Authors:

  American Public Transportation Association

  1666 K Street, NW, Suite 1100
  Washington, DC  United States  20006
• Authors:
  • Montvydas, David T
  • Bezner, Steven D
• Conference:
  • 2013 Rail Conference
  • Location: Philadelphia PA, United States
  • Date: 2013-6-2 to 2013-6-5
• Publication Date: 2013

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Pagination: 3p
• Monograph Title: 2013 Rail Conference

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Circuit breakers; Direct current; Electric substations; Elevated guideways; Mechanical failure; Power output; Trolley cars
• Identifier Terms: Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
• Uncontrolled Terms: Power outages; Service restoration
• Subject Areas: Maintenance and Preservation; Passenger Transportation; Railroads; I60: Maintenance; I70: Traffic and Transport;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01502561
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 26 2013 3:10PM