After checking out the simulator in Ashford depot, I realised that there was no third rail inside the building - so how do the trains move in there?
There’s two options: - Southeastern requires you to be very strong with big arms, so you can push the train by yourself, until the first bogie with 3rd rail shoe is in contact with the third rail. Or - There’s a small electric shunter running on battery to push the train but the vast majority of depot with electric trains are equipped with jumpers hanging from above, to supply power to the train by plugging it to a socket, it acts like a third rail. Jumpers are not just hanging but also moving on some kind of rail to be in movement with the train. With trains running under catenaries, on depots there’s a retractable rigid catenary that can be isolated or just a classic catenary with wires, that can be isolated as well. Jumpers can also be used. Still nowadays it’s done the old fashion way on some places, with a guy sticking some kind of big stick touching the 3rd rail shoe. But dangerous especially with the arcs damaging your eyes.
The same as they will do IRL. Depots with "pool pits" as these are called cant have the live rails near the pit as people work under neath the trains so the electricity at works act comes into play. What we do IRL with these type of roads is when you stable the shunter will tell you either "all the way in" which means when the train is stabling the driver/shunter will just drive the train all the way into the depot and stop on the "off rail" mark or whatever sign is in the depot to ensure it is off traction current. the trains will roll freely into the stabling point. If they dont want it off rail yet you will get told to leave it ON rail which basically means the last car will still be outside the shed put on traction current to power the train then the depot staff will stable the train by moving it inside the shed "off rail" when a train has to come back out power is supplied to the train via rails that are installed on gantrys hanging from the ceiling and shed leads get pluged into the receptical box of the train which will prove it with the power to move it outside to get one car on the the live rail then the shed leads get unplugged and the train will go out on its own power. hope this helps.
Actually would be a nice gimmick. Electric shunter dlc, equipped with a shunting coupler (dellner) and for normal coupling.
Would be really cool if this was modelled! I was wondering the same about ECML Hitachi Depot too tbh. Though they probs use the single diesel engine.
I think they do indeed as one of the scenarios has you taking a failed train or something to the depot? Called limping off
