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Room III: Signalling and safety equipment
In the early days of the railways, the traffic volume was low and the
speed was slow. Trains were driven by sight, and no special measures
were required to indicate whether a stretch of track was free and could
be driven along. The only signals were the red flag and a bell. When rail
traffic increased, people needed the support of technology to ensure
safety, the close succession of trains and
punctuality.
This required secured tracks. As well as the key
board and the central lock, the cylinder key matrix
was also used for this purpose.
The central exhibit in this room is an operational command signal box
and an interlocking system made by the Südbahn factory SBW 500 of
Siemens-Halske that dates from 1890, with an advance and a main
signal.
This enabled the operator to ensure that the train route was safe.
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