Regarding scrubber cars and rail corrugations, when I was doing the Stud Marking job with a W5 around 1990, a design engineer I dealt with daily told me scrubbers don't remove rail corrugations.

Several years later when the Eurotram visited Melbourne I was told the same thing by another gent there involved in the trackwork side of things.

With such a long entrenched believe in this erroneous information, I can't see much hope of attitudes changing in the future in Melbourne.

During trips to Europe in earlier years, on tramways with quieter track it was usual to see a scrubber car running around if staying for more than a day also. Surely all the European tramways with tracks scrubbers are not barking up the wrong tree?

It is interesting, Mal, that you mention wheel corrugations. It is something I have never heard anyone else mention before but have long believed that it occurs.

Despite all the disadvantages of brake shoes on the wheel tyres, at least they keep the wheels smooth and polished which does not happen with modern disc braked trams.

Regards,

> On 22 May 2017, at 7:53 pm, Mal Rowemal.rowe@... [TramsDownUnder] TramsDownUnder@...> wrote:

>

>> On 21/05/2017 11:05 AM, espee8800espee8800@... [TramsDownUnder] wrote:

>>

>> A Yarra Trams spokesperson defended its track-cleaning regime.

>> "Safety is our priority and a long-established track cleaning regime ensures tram tracks are in the right condition to enable safe tram trips," the spokesperson said. "Yarra Trams is doing more track cleaning than ever before." (YARRA SPIN)

>>

>> But Mr Altieri said Yarra Trams had outsourced track cleaning to a firm called ISS, which didn't do enough preventative or reactionary track cleaning in autumn. He said the leaves and their "oily residue" can cause trams to skid, particularly when travelling on an incline or decline.

> Here's today's pic of the Yarra Trams/ISS track cleaner.

> http://tdu.to/Track-cleaner_RoyalParade_22May2017.JPG

> ... and a detailed view of the water spray, rotating wire brushes and vaccuum cleaner nozzle.

> http://tdu.to/Track-cleaner-detail_RoyalParade_22May2017.JPG

>

> I may do a reasonable job of cleaning the leaf residue (which is often plane tree leaves as one European correspondent has noted).

> It does nothing about the 'rail smoothing' that the older carborundum block scrubbers did - so corrugations build up until more drastic measures are required.

>

> Mal Rowe - actually more concerned about 'corrugated wheels' on the D2s in Sydney Rd

>

>

>

>

> <Track-cleaner_RoyalParade_22May2017.JPG>

> <Track-cleaner-detail_RoyalParade_22May2017.JPG>