@fj We should definitely have this in the US, as soon as we have the means to keep drunken proud boys from tearing them up for spite.

@fj won't that be a challenge to keep them clean (and thus efficient) ?

@fj it's cute but even if you did all of it, 3800 km of standard gauge at 1.4mish wide with an energy density of roughly 100 W/m² gives you about 500 MW of power total, i.e. 10% of current (tiny) Swiss solar capacity.

You could get the same capacity by converting 0.03%(!) of Swiss agricultural land to solar.

@fj The rail line near me carried iron ore pellets on a regular basis, and the hopper cars were leaky enough to litter the tracks with an abundance of 15 mm spheres.

Leaks of cargo and rail car lubricants could be a problem for roadbed solar panels.

@fj As with any of the countles and infamous "solar roadways" projects the numbers and specific technical challenges make it not feasible. Would be nice if it where not so.

@fj
This is like solar farms in the empty space of highway cloverleaf intersections. It is land which can not be used for much of anything else, so it's the ideal place for solar.
@LivInTheLookingGlass

@fj i think the Swiss railways are not very enthusiastic about this idea, for tracks maintenance (costs) and security reasons.
How much solar power potential is still not exploited on the roofs, where panels are not interfering with critical infrastructure? This idea doesn't look serious to me.

Edit: Switzerland uses only 10% of its roof solar power potential, per march 2025.
Source: https://www.rts.ch/info/environnement/2025/article/carte-interactive-explorez-le-potentiel-solaire-des-toits-de-votre-commune-28811100.html

@fj this sounds like a really bad idea. As far as I recall the reason the rail ties are not fully submerged is also to disperse the sound caused by the pressure wave that runs in front of the trains. Replacing that with a flat, continuous surface would considerably alter the soundscape of the trains. 🤔

@fj
I was just laughing last night with friends about the 15 year old "Solar Freaking Roads!" craze. Looks like if you insert the word "Rail" is the one way it actually wins versus Solar Freaking Canopies.

@fj I don't read french - any word on what they're doing about everything within several yards of a railroad track being completely covered by a thick layer of brownish-black dust in a matter of a few months?

@fj What why would you ever put them in the middle of the track at maximum vibration, when there is plenty of space all around the tracks?

@fj Someone will drive over that

@fj

Why not above the tracks? Why not over canals?

But best:
Why not under transmission lines?

Often already owned by the democracy, on lines connecting to need, could accept added wind generation too. And good land for smart grids.

https://www.swissgrid.ch/en/home/operation/power-grid/swiss-power-grid.html

Medien: 1

@fj there are still some parts of Europe where not all trains have sewage tanks But joke aside, it just feels like it would be exposed too much to mechanical damage

@fj it sounds like a good idea, but it's actually a terrible one. they would be much better suspended above the railway, but definitely not on the tracks.

@fj How nice that today, toilets don't release directly on the track any more.

@fj for the moment, it is an experiment that shall last 3 years minimum. I guess after 3 years, they'll have a good view of issues and positive points as well.

@fj solar frikking railways!?

@fj Terrible idea. Very high vibration and lots of dirt. Also makes maintaining the railbed much more difficult. And laying them in lines instead of squares seems really inefficient

@fj Solar panels are a very affordable way to generate electricity and should definitely be on every roof or flat surface available.

In general it seems like a good idea. I can think of a couple of practical reasons to maybe not install them in between rails. For track inspection or in case of any maintenance to the tracks the solar panels will have to be removed in order to avoid damage. This will create extra costs for track maintenance and may therefore not be feasible in every situation.

@fj That's interesting. I wonder how long they will last there.

@fj the most stupid place imaginable to mount solar panels; just short of airport runways and rocket launchpads. 🙄

@fj That is so neat! I wonder how they compensate for the vibration?

@fj this is the kind of innovation that we need more of.

Makes sense in places:
-where available land is limited
-where electrical infrastructure is nearby
-where other uses are not going to be restricted

Solar panels, like other silicon chips, are going to continue to become more efficient and cheaper, just like that PC of the ‘80’s that cost $6k and used a floppy disk for storage. Nobody thought they made any sense either…

@fj I would immediately like to claim the invention of a railway track solar panel washing device. Patent pending (TM)

@fj

If you used the space on either side of the track you'd have twice as much power and half as many problems.

@fj #xkcd did this one already https://xkcd.com/1924/

@fj There's a reason we don't have solar along all the highways - cabling and inverters make it expensive.

@fj Judging by the level of innovation in our Deutsche Bahn, this idea will probably reach them in 10 or 20 years. 🤔

@fj you're right that this is a "no brainer", in the sense that this idea only makes sense to someone who isn't thinking.

Now you can't inspect the line. The risk of derailment from loose, improperly fitted, or damaged panels poses a danger to on-train staff and the traveling public. An incident with loose RRAP panels in the UK recently comes to mind. Track staff are more likely to slip and fall or to twist their ankle.

Any risk is unacceptable considering the panels have no inherent need to be there.

@fj I'm curious how they'll go - or maybe they leak fewer fluids than the electric trains in Melbourne do.

@fj do the panels stay clean enough? isn't it quite dirty with dust, abrasions and since it's lying down flat? :l_curious:

@fj solar freakin... railways?

@fj people are so quick to complain about solar taking up space, but never the cattle farms that take up much more space than solar would ever

@fj why? because that's where the crap falls down our used to fall down after you flush the toilet in a train‽

@fj Curious about how the method of securing the panels between the rails will affect the rails in the long term, as well as what materials they're using for the cleaning brushes on the trains.

@fj Why not ABOVE FFS.

@fj @KalleWirsch I‘m really curious if this will work. Definitely an interesting idea, but I’m somewhat sceptical 😅

@fj @lapresse En Suisse ils font des essais avec des panneaux solaires sur les rails des trains. Ça sert à minimiser l’impact écologique en profitant des infrastructures existantes.

@fj This one is a no-brainer in that it's extremely stupid. A much better place to put solar panels is, say, two meters to the left of the track, where you don't have to worry about brake dust etc contaminating the panels, or shutting down a railway to perform maintenance of the panels. But then it'd just be an ordinary solar panel installation and wouldn't get hyped by gullible news outlets.

@fj it's a bad idea, but at least the wheels don't go right over them, lol

@fj

Ne semble pas trop pratique, a mon avis...

@fj As someone who knows something about railways I think this is a terrible idea.

@fj vibration and particles etc...