Abt switch

The Abt switch is a kind of railway switch used on funiculars (inclined cable railways) that doesn’t have any moving parts. It allows two cars to pass each other going uphill/downhill while sharing the same tracks. While most train switches rely on physically moving a section of track so the train goes one way or the other, the abt switch doesn’t move at all. Instead each carriage has a grooved wheel which makes it turn left or right at a junction by sticking to the track on one side.

Image sources

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Funicular_to_Horseshoe_Curve_viewing_area_(8999490400).jpg#mw-jump-to-license

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Funicular_layouts_(2_rails).svg#mw-jump-to-license

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Heidelberg_funicular_wheelset.jpg#mw-jump-to-license

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  • SwitchyandWitchy [she/her]@hexbear.netMEnglish
    4·
    6 days ago
    spoiler

    Gender is kind of bullshit and I’m kind of of the opinion that things would be better for everyone if it didn’t exist at all and we just expressed ourselves however the hell we wanted, but while it exists, I’m just a girl. And I need to get better at letting myself say that without any other qualifiers. Because they aren’t me.

    I love this bit so much. I remember very distinctly when I came to the conclusion that I’m a woman, and I didn’t need to earn the title in some way beyond just being myself. And if I ended up deciding that I’m non-binary, that it would be because that’s actually how I felt and not because I didn’t feel I was woman enough.