Abstract
This paper describes a cause of fire accidents on power system fire DC electric traction vehicles. We investigated fire scene of power line for DC electric traction vehicles. From analysis results, the cause of fire on power line turned out line to ground fault between a feeder of electric power services(pantagraph) and DC electric traction vehicle roof. Fire accident of DC electric traction vehicles be assumed that electric sparks had been produced between the pantagraph and the power line conductor by repetitively making contact and separation, maybe if some material like branches get in between connecting rod it makes progress line to ground fault. ZnO arresters are widely used to protect DC electric traction vehicles against overvoltages caused by lightning or switching surges. However, the arresters are deteriorated by commercial overvoltages and/or lightning one. The deteriorated arresters could lead power failures, such as line to ground fault by a thermal runaway resulting from the increases in leakage current even in a nominal power system voltage. Finally, the power failures would be causative of the fire accident.
