From: johnl@iecc.com   
      
   >notoriously nasty winter, had to be pulled off Chicago's rapid transit   
   >routes that shared r-o-w with expressways as motors kept burning out   
   >when the snow was sucked it. That couldn't really be blamed on the   
   >manufacturer.   
      
   Sure it could.  It's entirely predictable that if you run equipment in   
   places where it snows heavily, you're going to get snow into anything   
   near ground level.  This may not have occurred to people who live in   
   Seattle, where an inch of snow calls for the National Guard.  (Some   
   wag one said we're really lucky that cars are designed in Detroit   
   rather than in Miami.)   
      
   >What did Chicago do different from Boston and San Francisco?   
      
   I don't remember the timing; was this at the same time or later?   
      
   >It would be lovely if transit agencies spec'ed PCCs. Maintenance was   
   >relatively simple and straightforward. But they're not modern and   
   >no one would do that.   
      
   If only.  They have problems with materials like asbestos but I   
   wouldn't think that would be hard to update.  They still seem to work   
   reliably on SF Muni's F line which is all historic trolleys.   
      
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