{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"DefinedTerm","name":"overhead line","description":"Railway operators and infrastructure managers use the overhead line as the primary power supply for electric traction: a contact wire is suspended above the track, and the train's pantograph slides along it to draw current into the traction system. Return current flows back through the running rails. European networks operate under several different voltage and current standards – commonly 15 kV or 25 kV alternating current and 3 kV direct current – reflecting decades of independent national dev","inDefinedTermSet":{"@type":"DefinedTermSet","name":"Frachtportal Logistics Glossary","url":"https://www.freight-academy.com/en/glossary"},"url":"https://www.freight-academy.com/en/glossary/overhead-line","inLanguage":"en","dateModified":"2026-06-26T19:44:07.846396","citation":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overhead_line","markdownMirror":"https://www.freight-academy.com/api/md/glossary/en/overhead-line","provider":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Frachtportal","url":"https://www.freight-academy.com"},"quickSummary":"overhead line · Railway operators and infrastructure managers use the overhead line as the primary power supply for electric traction: a contact wire is suspended above the track, and the train's pantograph slides along it to draw current into the traction system. · Quelle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overhead_line"}