Catenary ferry
A catenary ferry is a special form of a catenary ship or ferry .
In the case of an overhead line ferry, the electrically powered ship draws its propulsion energy from an overhead line above the water. Overhead line ferries are not suitable for wide bodies of water, as the establishment of overhead line masts in bodies of water is very complex. As a rule, there is only one single span. Since there is usually only one route, multi-pole overhead lines can also be used. These are to be used if the fairway cannot be used as a second pole due to low electrical conductivity or due to official requirements.
Examples
In Germany, the Strausseefähre , which has been electrically operated since 1915, is the last remaining overhead line ferry . It drives east of Berlin over the Straussee and gets its traction current from an open single-pole overhead line.
The Haßmersheim ferry on the Neckar was in operation from 1948 to September 2014 ; she was one of the chain ferries .
In 2011 Diversified Marine built the Buena Vista Ferry in Portland , Oregon , which is powered by an overhead line. It connects Marion County and Polk County on the Willamette River, which is 220 meters wide at this point . Both predecessor ferries (around 1939–1955 and 1955–2011) were electrically powered via a pantographless cable towing device.
The Canby Ferry is another trolley ferry over the Willamette River, while the Wheatland Ferry was converted to diesel-electric propulsion in 2002 .