Abstract
for nearly forty years a service of train ferries connecting Sicily with the mainland has been running across the Strait of Messina. The distance between the two terminal points, Messina and Villa San Giovanni, is about five miles. Until recently the service was maintained by two small ships which crossed in opposite directions simultaneously, so as to prevent an accumulation of rolling stock on either side of the Strait. In October 1931 they were replaced by the Diesel-electric train ferry Scilla, which has a displacement of 4,000 tons and a length of 358 ft. In Engineering of February 23, a full description is given of the vessel. It has a horse power of 5,000 and a maximum speed of 17 miles per hour. The coaches are embarked and disembarked at the end by means of a movable bridge. The adoption of Diesel-electric propulsion for a vessel of this type has several advantages, in particular its ability to run economically at different speeds, and rapid and accurate manoeuvring. There are two steering stations on the vessel, one on the boat deck and the other in the engine-room, and interlocks are provided so that it is impossible to operate the controls from both stations at the same time. The ferry carries both passengers and goods, and traffic in the latter, and more particularly the transport of fruit, has steadily increased since its inauguration. It is of a seasonal nature with a winter maximum, a summer minimum and a short peak load in June. The crossing takes 25 minutes and there are first and second class restaurants on the passenger deck. The corridor deck contains first, second and third class saloons for the passengers.
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The Diesel-Electric Train Ferry Scilla. Nature 133, 322 (1934). https://doi.org/10.1038/133322a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/133322a0