Contact System of the Butte, Anaconda & Pacific Railway

A careful study of the general conditions existing on the B. A. & P. R. R. indicated that an overhead contact system was advisable. The relatively large amount of energy required per locomotive unit made the adoption of the roller pantagraph desirable. The weight of this type of collector demanded that the trolley line be made as flexible as possible. Special hangers, pull-offs, etc., were designed to accomplish this result. The cost of the contact system was relatively high because of the unusual conditions. The operation is quite successful, though some minor troubles were experienced in the beginning.