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Cog Railway

Cog railway

A cog railway or rack-and-pinion railway is a mountain railway with a special toothed rack rail mounted on the sleepers between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels that mesh with this rack rail. This allows the locomotives to haul the trains up steeply inclined slopes.

Rack systems

A number of different rack systems have been developed:
- The Riggenbach system uses a ladder rack, formed of steel plates connected by round bars at regular intervals. The Riggenbach system was the first system devised, and suffers from the problem that its fixed rack is much more complex and expensive to build than the other systems. This system is sometimes known as the Marsh system, because of simultaneous invention by an American inventor, Syvester Marsh, builder of the Mount Washington railroad.
- The Abt system was devised by Roman Abt, a Swiss locomotive engineer working for a Riggenbach-equipped line, as an improved rack system. The Abt rack features steel plates mounted vertically and in parallel to the rails, with rack teeth machined to a precise profile in them. These engage with the locomotive's pinion teeth much more smoothly than the Riggenbach system. Two or three parallel sets of Abt rack plates are used, with a corresponding number of driving pinions on the locomotive, to ensure that at least one pinion tooth is always engaged securely.
- The Strub system is similar to the Abt but uses just one row of wider rack plate. It is the simplest rack system to maintain and has become increasingly popular.
- The Locher system involves gear teeth cut in the sides rather than the top of the rail, engaged by two cog wheels on the locomotive. This system allows use on steeper grades than the other systems, whose teeth could jump out of the rack. It is used on the Mount Pilatus railway.
- The Fell system (not actually a rack system) uses a raised centre rail that is gripped by a mechanism on the engine. The vast majority of cog railways use the Abt system. Some rail systems, known as 'rack-and-adhesion', use the cog drive only on the steepest sections and elsewhere operate like a regular railway. Others are rack-only. On the latter type, the locomotives' wheels are generally free-wheeling and despite appearances do not contribute to driving the train.

Cog locomotives

Fell system Originally, almost all cog railways were powered by steam locomotives. The steam locomotive needs to be extensively modified to work effectively in this environment. Unlike a diesel locomotive or electric locomotive, the steam locomotive only works when its powerplant (the boiler, in this case) is fairly level. The locomotive boiler requires water to cover the boiler tubes and firebox sheets at all times, particularly the crown sheet, the metal top of the firebox. If this is not covered with water, the heat of the fire will melt it until it softens enough to give way under the boiler pressure, leading to a catastrophic failure. On rack systems with extreme gradients, the boiler, cab and general superstructure of the locomotive are tilted forward relative to the wheels, so that they are more or less horizontal when on the steeply graded track of the railway. These locomotives often cannot function on level track, and so the entire line, including maintenance shops, must be laid on a gradient. This is one of the reasons why rack railways were among the first to be electrified and most of today's rack railways are electrically powered. On a rack-only railroad locomotives always push their passenger cars for safety reasons since the locomotive is fitted with powerful brakes, often including hooks or clamps that grip the rack rail solidly. Some locomotives are fitted with automatic brakes that apply if the speed gets too high, preventing runaways. Often there is no coupler between locomotive and train since gravity will always push the passenger car down against the locomotive. Electrically powered vehicles often have electromagnetic track brakes as well.

List of cog and rack railways

passenger car

Australia

- West Coast Wilderness Railway in Tasmania, originally opened in 1896 to service the Mount Lyell copper mine and closed and completely removed in 1960s'. Rebuilt and re-opened for tourists in 2003. Uses Abt system.
- Mt Morgan - rack system existed until 1950s until deviated.
- SkiTube - in Snowy Mountains.

Greece

- Diakofto Kalavrita Railway [http://www.igougo.com/planning/journalEntryActivity.asp?EntryID=4155]

Hungary

- Fogaskerekű Vasút in Budapest, Hungary is a kind of cog-wheel tram in the hilly Buda part of the city.

India

- Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Italy

- Superga Rack Railway

Japan

- Ikawa Line, Oigawa Railway is the only one rack-and-pinion railway operating in Japan. The company runs a 1067mm (Japanese standard) line and Ikawa line, converted from 762 mm gauge, in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan. The Abt system section of 1.5 km with maximum gradient of 9% is in Igawa Line, re-laid from adhesion line on 2 October 1990, due to Nagashima Dam construction.
- Usui Pass was the first cog line in Japan, built in Shin-Etsu Line of the then Japanese National Railway. It was replaced in 1963 by a newly built parallel pure adhesion line.

New Zealand

- Rimutaka Incline, near Wellington - a Fell (non-rack) system operated until 1955, when replaced by a tunnel.

Spain

- Montserrat Rack Railway
- Vall de Núria Rack Railway

Switzerland

- Gornergratbahn
- Berner Oberland Bahn
- Brienz-Rothorn Bahn
- Jungfraubahn
- Luzern-Stans-Engelberg-Bahn
- Monte Generoso Railway
- Pilatus Railway
- Schynige Platte Railway
- Wengernalpbahn
- Rorschach to Heiden

United Kingdom

- Snowdon Mountain Railway

United States

- Mount Washington Cog Railway
- Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway

In fiction

The Culdee Fell Mountain Railway is a fictional cog railway on the Island of Sodor in The Railway Series by Rev. W. Awdry. Its operation, locomotives and history are at least in part based on the Snowdon Mountain Railway.

Mountain railway

A mountain railway is a railway that ascends and descends a mountain slope that has a steep grade. There are funiculars that use a winch and cables to haul a cable car or wagons up and down a generally straight track. There are also centre traction rail systems that may use a rack and pinion system or a friction wheel system that allows the railway locomotives to haul themselves up the rail. Mountain railways commonly have a narrow gauge to allow for tight curves in the track and reduce tunnel size, and hence construction cost and effort. Without a mountain railway system, on steep grades gravity can apply sufficient adhesion to the locomotives' wheels to overcome the friction between the wheels and the rails, and the locomotive will simply slide down the track. Ordinarily, railway locomotives require grades no steeper than 1 in 40 (2¹/₂%)for practical operations. While ordinary railway locomotives can operate on grades as steep as 1 in 30 (3¹/₃%), their hauling capacity is limited and more powerful locomotives are normally required. Traction rail systems can easily operate on grades as steep as 1 in 12 (8¹/₃%), a grade that challenges all but the lightest locomotives or railcars. On even steeper grades cables are used. The car itself is often custom built for the slope, with specially raked seating and steps rather than a sloped floor. Taken to its logical conclusion as the slope becomes vertical, a funicular becomes an elevator (British English: lift).

List of mountain railways

Australia

- Ski Tube
- Mt Morgan Rack Railway
- West Coast Wilderness Railway
- Glenreagh Mountain Railway

Austria

- Schneebergbahn
- Schafbergbahn

Brazil

- Corcovado Rack Railway

China

- Qingzang Railway

France

- Mont Blanc Tramway
- Montenvers Railway
- The C line and two funiculars in the Lyon metro system

Germany

- Berchtesgaden Mountain Railway
- Drachenfels Railway
- Wendelstein Railway
- Zugspitze Railway

India

- Nilgiri Mountain Railway

Italy

- Superga Rack Railway

Japan

- Hakone Tozan Railway

New Zealand

- Rimutaka Incline Commenced operation in 1878 and ceased operation in 1955.

Spain

- Montserrat Rack Railway
- Vall de Núria Rack Railway

Switzerland

- Bergbahn Lauterbrunnen-Mürren
- Berner Oberland Bahn
- Jungfraubahn
- Luzern-Stans-Engelberg-Bahn
- Monte Generoso Railway
- Pilatus Railway
- Schynige Platte Railway
- Swiss-Rigi Mountain Railway
- Wengernalpbahn

United Kingdom

- Cairngorm Mountain Railway
- Snowdon Mountain Railway

Isle of Man

- Snaefell Mountain Railway

United States

- Mount Washington Cog Railway
- Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway

Rail tracks

Railroad or railway tracks are used on railways, which, together with railroad switches (points), guide trains without the need for steering. Tracks consist of two parallel steel rails, which are laid upon sleepers (or cross ties) which are embedded in ballast to form the railroad track. The rail is fastened to the sleepers with rail spikes for wooden sleepers or Pandrol clips for cement or concrete sleepers. Rails, being made of steel, can carry heavier loads than any other material. Sleepers spread the load from the rails over the ground, and also serve to hold the rails a fixed distance apart (called the gauge). Rail tracks are normally laid on a bed of coarse stone chippings known as ballast, which combines resilience, some amount of flexibility, and good drainage; however, track can also be laid on or into concrete (this is called slab track). Across bridges track is often laid on sleepers across longitudinal timbers.

Railway rail

Unlike other uses of iron and steel, railway rails are subject to very high stresses and have to be made of very high quality steel. It took many decades to improve the quality of the materials, including the change from iron to steel. Minor flaws in the steel that pose no problems with, say, reinforcing rods for buildings, can lead to broken rails and dangerous derailments when used on railway tracks. The rails represent a substantial fraction of the cost of a railway line. Only a small number of rail sizes are made by the steelworks at the one time, so a railway must choose the nearest suitable size. Worn heavy rail from a mainline is often cascaded to branchline use. Rails are made in a large number of different sizes. Some common European rail sizes include:
- 40 kg/m (81 lb/yd)
- 50 kg/m (101 lb/yd)
- 60 kg/m (121 lb/yd) Some common North American rail sizes include:
- 115 lb/yd (57 kg/m)
- 133 lb/yd (66 kg/m)
- 136 lb/yd (67 kg/m)
- 140 lb/yd (69 kg/m) Rails in Canada, the United Kingdom, and United States are still described using imperial units. The examples in the diagram opposite are 113 and 95 pounds per yard (56 kg/m and 47 kg/m) respectively. Early railroads sometimes used strap-iron rails, which consisted of thin strips of iron strapped onto wooden rails. These rails were too fragile to carry heavy loads, but because the initial construction cost was less, this method was sometimes used to quickly build an inexpensive rail line. However, the long term expense involved in frequent maintenance outweighed any savings.

Axle load

By and large, the heavier the rails and the rest of the track, the heavier and faster the trains on those tracks can be.

Jointed track

Axle load There are different ways of joining rails together to form tracks. The traditional way of doing this was to bolt rails together in what is known as jointed track. In this form of track, lengths of rail, usually around 20 metres (60 feet) long, are laid and fixed to sleepers (U.K.) (crossties, or simply ties in North American practice), and are joined to other lengths of rail with steel plates known as fishplates (U.K.) or joint bars (N.A.). Historically, North American railroads until the mid to late 20th century used sections of rail that measured 39 feet (11.9 m) long so they could be carried to and from a worksite in conventional gondolas, which often measured 40 feet (12.2 m) long; as car sizes increased, so did rail lengths. Fishplates or joint bars are usually 60 centimetres (2 feet) long, and are bolted through each side of the rail ends with bolts (usually four, but sometimes up to six). Small gaps are deliberately left between the rails, which are known as "expansion joints" to allow for expansion of the rails in hot weather. The holes through which the fishplate bolts pass are oval to allow for expansion. British practice was always to have the rail joints on both rails at the same place on each rail, while North American practice is to stagger them. Because of the small gaps left between the rails, when trains pass over jointed tracks they make a "clickety clack, clickety clack" noise. Unless it is very well maintained, jointed track gives a fairly bumpy and uncomfortable ride, and is unsuitable for high speed trains because it is too weak. However it is still used in many countries on lower speed lines, unimportant lines, and sidings. Most railroad track in the United States is still of this type, however, and laid on timber ties; the lower speeds of American railroads make the disadvantages less apparent, and the abundant supply of timber in the United States makes its use for railroad ties much cheaper than in Europe. Jointed track is still extensively used in poorer countries, due to the cheaper construction costs and lack of modernisation of their railway systems.

Continuous welded rail

siding Most modern railways use continuous welded rail (CWR); in this form of track the rails are welded together, by utilising the thermite reaction, to form one continuous rail that may be several kilometres long. Because there are few joints, this form of track is very strong, gives a smooth ride, and needs less maintenance. Because of its strength, trains travelling on welded track can travel at higher speeds and with less friction. Welded rails are more expensive to lay than jointed tracks, but are significantly cheaper to maintain. As mentioned earlier, rails expand in hot weather and shrink in cold weather. Because welded track has very few expansion joints, if no special measures are taken, it could become distorted in hot weather and cause a derailment. To avoid this happening welded rails are very often laid on concrete sleepers, which are so heavy they hold the rails firmly in place, and with plenty of ballast to stop the sleepers moving. After new segments of rail are laid, or defective rails replaced (welded in), the rails are artificially heated so that they expand (this is called stressing), they are then fastened (clipped) to the sleepers in their expanded form. This ensures that the rail will not expand much further in subsequent hot weather, and because they are firmly fastened, cannot shrink in cold weather either. However if temperatures reach outside normal ranges (i.e. a hotter than usual summer), welded rails can become distorted. Joints are used in continuously welded rail when necessary; instead of a joint that passes straight across the rail, producing a loud noise and shock when the wheels pass over it, two sections of rail are cut at a steep angle and put together with a gap between them (a breather switch). This gives a much smoother transition yet still provides some expansion room.

Methods of fixing rail to sleepers/ties

breather switch There are several methods used to fasten rail to wooden sleepers / ties. In traditional British practice, cast metal chairs were screwed to the sleepers, which took a style of rail known as bullhead which was somewhat figure-8 in cross-section — wider at top and bottom (known as the head and foot respectively) and smaller in the middle (the web). Keys, which were wedges of wood or sprung steel were then driven in between chair and rail to hold it in place. The idea behind bullhead rails was that because both the top and bottom of the rails were the same shape, when one side of the rail became worn, the rail could be turned over to the unused side, thus extending the rail's lifespan. In practice, bullhead rails have a flat base (narrower than flat-bottomed rail), and the top part has curved edges which fit the profile of the train wheels. Like most of the world, Britain now uses flat-bottomed rail (Vignoles rail), which has become the worldwide standard type of rail and, as the name suggests, has a flat base and can stand upright without support. A flat-bottomed rail has a cross-section like that of an upside-down 'T' and is usually held to the sleeper with a baseplate, a metal plate attached to the sleeper, although for cheap construction they can be laid directly onto the sleepers. Vignoles Modern sleepers can be made of reinforced concrete and pressed steel, with rubber pads inserted between the sleeper and rail. This is done for two reasons: to give a smoother ride and to prevent the sleeper shorting the track circuit, a low voltage passed through the rails for signalling purposes. This is different from "traction current" which powers electric trains. A variety of different types of heavy-duty clips are used to fasten the rails to the underlying baseplate, one common one being the Pandrol fastener, named after its maker, which is shaped like a sturdy, stubby paperclip. North American practice normally uses spikes, which are fundamentally very large nails with bent-over heads to clasp the flat-bottomed rail. These are cheaper and simpler to install but can loosen if the tie rots — much more easily than the British chair does. This is mitigated by using very large and solid ties and using rot-proofing preservative. Image:Stanthorpe Rail Bridge DSC03186.jpg|Wooden Sleepers Image:Adelaide Darwin Railway Line between Adelaide River and Pine Creek DSC03643.jpg|Concrete Sleepers Image:Pine Creek Rail Steel Sleepers DSC03637.jpg|Steel Sleepers Image:Trevethick rail DSC00322.JPG|Iron & Brick Sleepers

Track maintenance

Vignoles] Track needs frequent maintenance to remain in good order, the frequency increasing with higher-speed or heavier trains. This was formerly hard manual labour, including teams of gandy dancers who used levers to force rails back into place on steep turns, correcting the gradual shifting caused by the centrifugal force of passing trains. Currently, maintenance is facilitated by a variety of specialised machines. The profile of the track is maintained using a railgrinder. Common maintenance jobs include spraying ballast with weedkiller to prevent weeds growing through and disrupting the ballast. This is typically done with a special weedkilling train. Over time, ballast is crushed by the weight of trains passing over it, and periodically it needs to be replaced. If this is not done then the tracks become uneven. Broken or worn out rails also need replacing periodically. Mainline rails that get worn out usually have life left in branchline use and are "cascaded" to those branchlines.

U.S. track classes

In the United States, the Federal Railroad Administration has developed a system of classification for track quality. The class a track is placed in determines speed limits and the ability to run passenger trains. The lowest class is referred to as excepted track. Only freight trains are allowed to operate on this type of trackage, and they may run at speeds up to 10 mph. Also, no more than five cars loaded with hazardous material may be operated within any single train. Class 1 track is the lowest class allowing the operation of passenger trains. Freight train speeds are still limited to 10 mph, and passenger trains are restricted to 15 mph. Class 2 track limits freight trains to 25 mph and passenger trains to 30 mph. Class 3 track limits freight trains to 40 mph and passenger trains to 60 mph. There is currently a legal battle between Amtrak and the Guilford Rail System over its trackage from Haverhill, MA, to Portland, ME. Amtrak is fighting for the Class 3 trackage to be used to operate its Downeaster at 79 mph. Class 4 track limits freight trains to 60 mph and passenger trains to 80 mph. Most track, especially that owned by major railroads the Union Pacific, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, CSX, and Norfolk Southern is class 4 track. Due to a technicality in law, Amtrak trains are limited to 79 mph on this track. Class 5 track limits freight trains to 80 mph and passenger trains to 90 mph. The most significant portion of Class 5 track is part of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe's Chicago–Los Angeles mainline, the old Santa Fe main, upon which Amtrak's Southwest Chief can operate at up to 90 mph. This is notable as the only area outside Amtrak-owned trackage or trackage upgraded through state funds where Amtrak trains can operate above 79 mph. Class 6 limits freight trains and passenger trains to 110 mph. Amtrak is currently working with the Iowa Interstate Railroad and the state of Illinois to upgrade a portion of its Chicago, Illinois–Kansas City, Missouri line to Class 6. Class 7 limits all trains to 125 mph. Most of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor is Class 7 trackage. Class 8 limits all trains to 160 mph. A few small lengths of the Northeast Corridor are the only Class 8 trackage in North America. Class 9 trackage limits all trains to 200 mph. There is currently no Class 9 trackage.

History

North America Some early rails were made by William Jessop in the 1790s. The steel mills making early rails often used some of the rails to build the tramways that bought iron ore and coal to those foundries. It took many decades for weak and fragile iron rails to evolve into the strong and robust steel rails of today. But problems can still occur, such as happened with the Hatfield train derailment in Great Britain on October 17, 2000. The accident involved gauge corner cracking which is now referred to as rolling contact fatigue, as the defect doesn't only occur on corners.

Train

:For other types of train see train (disambiguation) In rail transport, a train consists of a single or several connected rail vehicles that are capable of being moved together along a guideway to transport freight or passengers from one place to another along a planned route. The guideway (permanent way) usually consists of conventional rail tracks, but might also be monorail or maglev. Propulsion for the train is typically provided by a separate locomotive, or from individual motors in self-propelled multiple units. Power is usually derived from diesel engines or from electricity supplied by trackside systems. Historically the steam engine was the dominant form of locomotive power, and other sources of power (such as horses, pneumatics, or gas turbines) are possible as well. In American railway terminology, a consist is used to describe the group of rail vehicles which make up a train.

Types of trains

railway terminology, Perth ]] There are various types of trains designed for particular purposes, see rail transport operations. A train can consist of a combination of a locomotive and attached railroad cars, or a self-propelled multiple unit (or occasionally a single powered coach, called a railcar). Trains can also be hauled by horses, pulled by a cable, or run downhill by gravity. Special kinds of trains running on corresponding special 'railways' are atmospheric railways, monorails, high-speed railways, Dinky Trains, maglev, rubber-tired underground, funicular and cog railways. cog railway A passenger train may consist of one or several locomotives, and one or more coaches. Alternatively, a train may consist entirely of passenger carrying coaches, some or all of which are powered as a "multiple unit". In many parts of the world, particularly Japan and Europe, high-speed rail is utilized extensively for passenger travel. Freight trains comprise wagons or trucks rather than carriages, though some parcel and mail trains (especially Travelling Post Offices) are outwardly more like passenger trains. In the United Kingdom, a train hauled by two locomotives is said to be "double-headed", and in Canada and the United States it is quite common for a long freight train to be headed by three, four, or even five locomotives. Trains can also be mixed, hauling both passengers and freight, see e.g. Transportation in Mauritania. Such mixed trains became rare in many countries, but were commonplace on the first 19th-century railroads. Special trains are also used for track maintenance; in some places, this is called maintenance of way. A single uncoupled rail vehicle is not technically a train, but is usually referred to as such for signaling reasons.

Motive power

maintenance of way] The first trains were rope-hauled or pulled by horses, but from the early 19th century almost all were powered by steam locomotives. From the 1920s onwards they began to be replaced by less labor intensive and cleaner (but more expensive) diesel locomotives and electric locomotives, while at about the same time self-propelled multiple unit vehicles of either power system became much more common in passenger service. Most countries had replaced steam locomotives for day-to-day use by the 1970s. A few countries, most notably the People's Republic of China where coal is in cheap and plentiful supply, still use steam locomotives, but this is being gradually phased out. Historic steam trains still run in many other countries, for the leisure and enthusiast market. coal Electric traction offers a lower cost per mile of train operation but at a very high initial cost, which can only be justified on high traffic lines. Since the cost per mile of construction is much higher, electric traction is less favored on long-distance lines. Electric trains receive their current via overhead lines or through a third rail electric system.

Passenger trains

Passenger trains have Passenger cars. Passenger trains travel between stations; the distance between stations may vary from under 1 km to much more. Long-distance trains, sometimes crossing several countries, may have a dining or restaurant car; they may also have sleeping cars, but not in the case of high-speed rail, these arrive at their destination before the night falls and are in competition with airplanes in speed. Very long distance trains such as those on the Trans-Siberian railway are usually not high-speed. Very fast trains sometimes tilt, like the Pendolino or Talgo. Tilting is a system where the passenger cars automatically lean into curves, reducing the centrifugal forces acting on passengers and permitting higher speeds on curves in the track with greater passenger comfort. For trains connecting cities, we can distinguish inter-city trains, which do not halt at small stations, and trains that serve all stations, usually known as local trains or "stoppers" (and sometimes an intermediate kind, see also limited-stop). limited-stop For shorter distances many cities have networks of commuter trains, serving the city and its suburbs. Some carriages may be laid out to have more standing room than seats, or to facilitate the carrying of prams, cycles or wheelchairs. Some countries have some double-decked passenger trains for use in conurbations. Double deck high speed and sleeper trains are becoming more common in Europe. Passenger trains usually have emergency brake handles (or a "communication cord") that the public can operate. Abuse is punished by a fine. fine Large cities often have a metro system, also called underground, subway or tube. The trains are electrically powered, usually by third rail, and their railroads are separate from other traffic, without level crossings. Usually they run in tunnels in the city center and sometimes on elevated structures in the outer parts of the city. They can accelerate and decelerate faster than heavier, long-distance trains. A light one- or two-car rail vehicle running through the streets is not called a train but a tram, trolley, light rail vehicle or streetcar, but the distinction is not strict. The term light rail is sometimes used for a modern tram, but it may also mean an intermediate form between a tram and a train, similar to metro except that it may have level crossings. These are often protected with crossing gates. They may also be called a trolley. Maglev trains and monorails represent minor technologies in the train field. The term rapid transit is used for public transport such as commuter trains, metro and light rail. However, in New York City, lines on the New York City Subway have been referred to as "trains".

Freight trains

Passenger train human waste disposal Freight trains have freight cars. Much of the world's freight is transported by train. In the USA the rail system is used mostly for transporting freight (or cargo). Under the right circumstances, transporting freight by train is highly economic, and also more energy efficient than transporting freight by road. Rail freight is most economic when freight is being carried in bulk and over long distances, but is less suited to short distances and small loads. The main disadvantage of rail freight is its lack of flexibility. For this reason, rail has lost much of the freight business to road competition. Many governments are now trying to encourage more freight onto trains, because of the environmental benefits that it would bring. road competition]] There are many different types of freight train, which are used to carry many different kinds of freight, with many different types of wagon. One of the most common types on modern railways are container trains, whereby the containers can be lifted on and off the train by cranes and loaded off or onto trucks or ships. ship in 1992.]] This type of freight train has largely superseded the traditional "box wagon" type of freight train, whereby the cargo had to be loaded or unloaded manually. In some countries "piggy back" trains are used whereby trucks can drive straight onto the train and drive off again when the end destination is reached. A system like this is used on the Channel Tunnel between England and France. Piggy back trains are the fastest growing type of freight trains in the United States, where they are also known as 'trailer on flat car' or TOFC trains. There are also some "inter-modal" vehicles, which have two sets of wheels, for use in a train, or as the trailer of a road vehicle. There are also many other types of wagon, such as "low loader" wagons for transporting road vehicles. There are refrigerator wagons for transporting food. There are simple types of open-topped wagons for transporting minerals and bulk material such as coal and tankers for tranporting liquids and gases. Freight trains are sometimes illegally boarded by passengers who do not wish, or do not have the money, to travel by ordinary means. This is referred to as "Hopping" and is considered by some communities to be a viable form of transport. Most hoppers sneak into train yards and stow away in boxcars. More bold hoppers will catch a train "on the fly", that is, as it is moving, leading to occasional fatalities, some of which go unrecorded.

Famous train routes

Main article: Famous trains Famous historical train services include the:
- Orient Express in Europe.
- Trans-Siberian in Russia.
- Blue Train in South Africa.
- Train-de-Luxe from Johannesburg to Victoria Falls.
- Chihuahua al Pacifico in Mexico.
- Palace on Wheels in Rajasthan, India.
- Frontier Mail and Grand Trunk Express, India.
- The Canadian in Canada.
- 20th Century Limited in the USA.
- City of New Orleans in the USA.
- California Zephyr in the USA.
- The Indian-Pacific and The Ghan in Australia (long-distance rail).
- Puffing Billy and The Gulflander in Australia (heritage and touring).
- Rheingold Express in The Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland, following the course of the Rhine.

Fictional trains

See also: Rail transport in fiction
- Hogwarts Express — Takes Harry Potter to Hogwarts Academy.
- Taggart Comet (Atlas Shrugged)
- The Great Train Robbery — feature film based on a true story, also title of a modern film.
- Starlight Express (Andrew Lloyd Webber) — Musical about an old steam engine being replaced by an electrical engine.
- Galaxy Express 999 — From the manga and anime of the same name by Leiji Matsumoto, this train travels the galaxy from planet to planet.
- The Polar Express — From the book of the same name, this train takes children to the North Pole.
- Runaway Train — Film about escaped inmates on a runaway train.
- Atomic Train — TV movie (1999) A runaway train carrying an atomic bomb into a town.
- Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends TV Series originated from The Railway Series by the Rev.W.Awdry For a list of railway movies, see [http://www.spikesys.com/Trains/rly_movs.html] (website last updated December 5, 1995).

External links

- [http://www.raileurope.co.uk Book European rail travel online]
- [http://www.railfaneurope.net High Speed Train]
- Official [http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/planmyjourney/time_table/journey_requirements.asp train times] in the UK (from [http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ National Rail]).
- [http://www.railserve.com/ RailServe.com: The Internet Railroad Directory] - directory of 10,000 train sites
- [http://www.trainfoamers.com Trainfoamers.com] - It's Free To Talk Trains Again!
- [http://www.trainorders.com Trainorders.com] - Focus on trains of North America Category:Vehicles Category:Rail transport ms:Keretapi ja:列車

Gear

:For other uses of this term, see Gear (disambiguation). Gear (disambiguation) A gear is a toothed wheel designed to transmit torque to another gear or toothed component. The teeth (or cogs) of a gear are shaped to minimize wear, vibration and noise, and to maximize the efficiency of power transmission. Different-sized gears are often used in pairs for a mechanical advantage, allowing the torque of the driving gear to produce a larger torque in the driven gear at lower speed, or a smaller torque at higher speed. The larger gear is known as a wheel and the smaller as a pinion. This is the principle of the automobile transmission, allowing selection between various mechanical advantages. A gearbox is not an amplifier or a servomechanism. Conservation of energy requires that the amount of power delivered by the output gear or shaft will never exceed the power applied to the input gear, regardless of the gear ratio. There is actually some loss of output power due to friction. friction The most common type of gear wheel, spur gears, are flat and have teeth projecting radially and in the plane of the wheel, "straight-cut gears". These gears can be fitted only to parallel axles. Helical gears offer a refinement over spur gears. The teeth are cut at an angle, allowing for more gradual, hence smoother meshing between gear wheels, eliminating the whine characteristic of straight-cut gears. A disadvantage of helical gears is a resultant thrust along the axis of the gear, which needs to be accommodated by appropriate thrust bearings, and a greater degree of sliding friction between the meshing teeth, often addressed with specific additives in the lubricant. Double helical gears, also known as herringbone gears, overcome this problem by having teeth that are 'V' shaped. Each gear in a double helical gear can be thought of as two standard, but mirror image, helical gears stacked. This cancels out the thrust since each half of the gear thrusts in the opposite direction. They can be directly interchanged with spur gears without any need for different bearings. Beveled gears have angled teeth, allowing torque to be transmitted between non-parallel but intersecting axles. Four beveled gears in a square make a differential gear, which can transmit power to two axles spinning at different speeds, such as those on a cornering automobile. If the axles are skewed, that is, non-intersecting, then a worm gear can be used. This is a gear that resembles a screw, with parallel helical teeth, and mates with a normal spur gear. The worm gear can achieve a higher gear ratio than spur gears of a comparable size. A sector gear is merely a segment of a spur gear, such as one half or one quarter of the circumference, but still attached to the axle in the normal fashion. Such a gear will operate normally as long as the gear with which it meshes does not drive off the edge of the sector, for instance in a worm and sector automotive steering gear or its descendant the recirculating ball. It is useful for saving space and weight when only limited movement is necessary rather than the full 360 degrees of rotation. recirculating ball Torque can be converted to linear force by a rack and pinion. The pinion is a spur gear, and mates with a toothed bar or rod that can be thought of as a spur gear with an infinitely large radius of curvature. Such a mechanism is used in automobiles to convert the rotation of the steering wheel into the left-to-right motion of the tie rod(s).

Image:Crown gear.png
A crown gear

A crown gear or contrate gear is a special form of bevel gear which has teeth at right angles to the plane of the wheel; it meshes with a straight cut spur gear or pinion on a right-angled axis to its own, or with an escapement such as found in mechanical clocks. Simple gears suffer from backlash, which is the error in motion that occurs when gears change direction, resulting from hard to eliminate manufacturing errors. When moving forwards, the front face of the drive gear tooth pushes on the rear face of the driven gear. When the drive gear changes direction, its rear face is now pushing on the front face of the driven gear. Unless deliberately designed to eliminate it, there is slight 'slop' in any gearing where briefly neither face of the driving gear is pushing the driven gear. This means that input motion briefly causes no output motion. Assorted schemes exist to minimize or avoid problems this creates. In some machines it is necessary to change the gear ratio to suit the task. There are several ways of doing this. For example:
- Manual transmission ('stick shift' in the US)
- automatic gearbox
- derailleur gears which are actually sprockets in combination with a roller chain
- hub gears (also called epicyclic gearing or sun-and-planet gears)
- continuously variable transmission
- transmission (mechanics) Friction and wear between two gears is highly dependent on the profile of the teeth. The tooth form used for most applications is involute but there are other tooth forms such as cycloidal (used in mechanical clocks) or rack (used in automobile steering).

Locomotive

A locomotive (from lat. locus motivus) is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train, and has no payload capacity of its own; its sole purpose is to move the train along the tracks. In contrast, many trains feature self-propelled payload-carrying vehicles; these are not normally considered locomotives, and may be referred to as multiple units or railcars; the use of these self-propelled vehicles is increasingly common for passenger trains, but very rare for freight (see however CargoSprinter). Vehicles which provide the motive power to haul an unpowered train, but are not generally considered locomotives because they have payload space or are rarely detached from their trains, are known as power cars. Traditionally, locomotives haul (pull) their trains. Increasingly common these days in local passenger service is push-pull operation, where a locomotive pulls the train in one direction and pushes it in the other, and is therefore optionally controlled from a control cab at the opposite end of the train. This is especially true of "High Speed Rail lines", such as the Japan’s Shinkansen and France’s TGV trains. TGV Grange class steam locomotive, at Bristol Temple Meads station, Bristol, England]]

Origins

The first successful locomotives were built by Cornish inventor Richard Trevithick. In 1804 his unnamed locomotive hauled a train along the tramway of the Penydarren ironworks, near Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. Although the locomotive hauled a train of 10 tons of iron and 70 passengers in five wagons over nine miles it was too heavy for the cast iron rails used at the time. The locomotive only ran three journeys before it was abandoned. In 1813, George Stephenson persuaded the manager of the Killingworth colliery where he worked to allow him to build a steam-powered machine. He built the Blucher, the first successful flanged-wheel adhesion locomotive. The flanges enabled the trains to run on top of the rails instead of in sunken tracks. This greatly simplified construction of switches (called "points" in UK) and rails, and opened the way to the modern railroad.

Benefits of locomotives

switches There are many reasons why the motive power for trains has been traditionally isolated in a locomotive, rather than in self-propelled vehicles. These include:
- Ease of maintenance - it is easier to maintain one locomotive than many self-propelled cars.
- Safety - it is often safer to locate the train's power systems away from passengers. This was particularly the case for steam locomotives, but still has some relevance for other power sources.
- Easy replacement of motive power - should the locomotive break down, it is easy to replace it with a new one. Failure of the motive power unit does not require taking the whole train out of service.
- Efficiency - idle trains do not waste expensive motive power resources. Separate locomotives mean that the costly motive power assets can be moved around as needed.
- Flexibility - large locomotives can be substituted for small locomotives where the gradients of the route become steeper and more power is needed.
- Obsolescence cycles - separating the motive power from the payload-hauling cars means that either can be replaced without affecting the other. At some times, locomotives have become obsolete when their cars are not, or vice versa.

Classification by motive power

Locomotives may generate mechanical work from fuel, or they may take power from an outside source. It is common to classify locomotives by their means of providing motive work - the common ones include:

Steam

power power The first railway locomotives (19th century) were powered by steam, first by burning wood, later coke and coal or petroleum. Because of the steam engine, some people took to calling the steam locomotives themselves "steam engines". The steam locomotive remained by far the most common type of locomotive until after World War II. The age of steam correlates highly to the coal era. The first steam locomotive was built by Richard Trevithick, and first ran on 21 February 1804, although it took some years before steam locomotive design became efficient and economically practical. Fairy Queen, built in 1855; plying between New Delhi and Alwar in India, is the longest-running steam locomotive in regular service in the world, but John Bull, built in 1831, is currently the oldest operable steam locomotive. John Bull is preserved in mostly static display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. The all-time speed record for steam trains is held by an LNER Class A4 4-6-2 Pacific locomotive of the LNER in the United Kingdom, number 4468 Mallard, which pulling six carriages (plus a dynamometer car) reached 126 mph (203 km/h) on a slight downhill gradient down Stoke Bank on 3 July 1938. Aerodynamic passenger locomotives from other countries such as Germany and the United States attained speeds very close to this, and this is generally believed to be close to the practicable upper limit for the direct-coupled steam locomotive. Before the middle of the 20th century, electric and diesel-electric locomotives began replacing steam locomotives. Steam locomotives are less efficient than their more modern diesel and electric counterparts and require much greater manpower to operate and service. British Rail figures showed the cost of crewing and fuelling a steam locomotive was some two and a half times that of diesel power, and the daily mileage achievable was far lower. As labour costs rose, particularly after the second world war, non-steam technologies became much more cost-efficient. By the end of the 1960s-1970s, most western countries had completely replaced steam locomotives in commercial service. Freight locomotives generally were replaced later. Other designs, such as locomotives powered by gas turbines, have been experimented with, but have seen little use. By the end of the 20th century, almost the only steam power still in regular use in North America and Western European countries was on heritage railways specifically aimed at tourists and/or railroad enthusiasts, known as railfans or train spotters, although some narrow gauge lines in Germany which form part of the public transport system, running to all-year-round timetables retain steam for all or part of their motive power. Steam locomotives remained in commercial use in parts of Mexico into the late 1970s. Steam locomotives are in regular use in China, where coal is a much more abundant resource than petroleum for diesel fuel. India has switched in the 1990's from steam-powered trains to electric- and diesel-powered trains. In some mountainous and high altitude rail lines, steam engines remain in use because they are less affected by reduced air pressure than diesel engines. petroleum 73096, a 4-6-0 steam loco, at Virginia Water station, April 2004.]]

External links

- [http://www.steamlocomotive.com/ Database of surviving steam locomotives in North America]
- [http://steamrailroading.com/ Information on North American steam railroads in operation]

Diesel-mechanical

Diesel locomotives vary in the form of transmission used to convey the power from a diesel engine (or engines) to the wheels. The simplest form of transmission is by means of a gearbox, in the same way as on road vehicles. Diesel trains or locomotives that use this are called diesel-mechanical and began to appear (although limited in power) even before the first world war which saw a number of simplex diesel systems built for the war, a small number of which survive and are still operational today. It has, however, been found impractical to build a gearbox which can cope with a power output of more than 400 horsepower (300 kW) without breaking, despite a number of attempts to do so. Therefore this type of transmission is only suitable for low-powered shunting locomotives, or lightweight multiple units or railcars. For more powerful locomotives, other types of transmission have to be used.

Diesel-electric

railcar refueling at Dunsmuir, California]] The most common form of transmission is electric; a locomotive using electric transmission is known as a diesel-electric locomotive. With this system, the diesel engine drives a generator or alternator; the electrical power produced then drives the wheels using electric motors. In effect, such a locomotive is an electric locomotive which carries its own generating station along with it. Early diesel-electrics were switching engines used to move rail cars around in rail yards. The first went into service in 1918 with the Jay Street Connecting Railroad. Sixteen years later, the technology began to be applied to regular mainline service as streamlined passenger trains went into operation. Actually, a petroleum distillate-electric system powered the first such train, but diesel-electric systems soon proved to be more cost-effective because of higher efficiency and lower maintenance costs. The fuel for one early high-speed run from Chicago, Illinois to Denver, Colorado only cost US$14.64 (in 1934 dollars). In the 1970s, British Rail in the United Kingdom developed a high-speed diesel-electric train called the High Speed Train or HST. This train consists of two Class 43 locomotives (also known as power cars), one at each end, and a number of "Mark 3" carriages (usually 8). A complete HST set was originally designated as a Class 253 or 254 diesel multiple unit (DMU), but due to the frequent exchanges between sets the power cars were reclassified as locomotives and given class number 43. The unpowered carriages were simultaneously reclassified as individual coaches - the number of a DMU set should identify all its associated carriages as well. The prototype HST (designated Class 252) holds the world speed record for diesel traction, having reached a speed of 143 mph, although the operating speed of the production HST in service is 125 mph (200 km/h), hence the name "Inter-City 125". A variant of the Intercity 125, the XPT, is in service on New South Wales railways in Australia, but with a lower top speed and different carriages.

Diesel-hydraulic

Alternatively, diesel-hydraulic locomotives use hydraulic transmission to convey the power from the diesel engine to the wheels. On this type of locomotive, the power is transmitted to the wheels by means of a device called a torque converter. A torque converter consists of three main parts, two of which rotate, and one which is fixed. All three main parts are sealed in a housing filled with oil. The inner rotating part of a torque converter is called a centrifugal pump (or impeller), the outer part is called a turbine wheel (or driven wheel), and between them is a fixed guide wheel. All of these parts have specially shaped blades to control the flow of oil. The centrifugal pump is connected directly to the diesel engine, and the turbine wheel is connected to an axle, which drives the wheels. As the diesel engine rotates the centrifugal pump, oil is forced outwards at high pressure. The oil is forced through the blades of the fixed guide wheel and then through the blades of the turbine wheel, which causes it to rotate and thus turn the axle and the wheels. The oil is then pumped around the circuit again and again. The disposition of the guide vanes allows the torque converter to act as a "gearbox" with continuously variable ratio. If the output shaft is loaded so as to reduce its rotational speed, the torque applied to the shaft increases, so the power transmitted by the torque converter remains more or less constant. However, the range of variability is not sufficient to match engine speed to load speed over the entire speed range of a locomotive, so some additional method is required to give sufficient range. One method is to follow the torque converter with a mechanical gearbox which switches ratios automatically, similar to an automatic transmission on a car. Another method is to provide several torque converters each with a range of variability covering part of the total required; all the torque converters are mechanically connected all the time, and the appropriate one for the speed range required is selected by filling it with oil and draining the others. The filling and draining is carried out with the transmission under load, and results in very smooth range changes with no break in the transmitted power. Diesel-hydraulic multiple units, a less arduous duty, often use a simplification of this system, with a torque converter for the lower speed ranges and a fluid coupling for the high speed range. A fluid coupling is similar to a torque converter but the ratio of input to output speed is fixed; loading the output shaft results not in torque multiplication and constant power throughput but in reduction of the input speed with consequent lower power throughput. (In car terms, the fluid coupling provides top gear and the torque converter provides all the lower gears.) The result is that the power available at the rail is reduced when operating in the lower speed part of the fluid coupling range, but the less arduous duty of a passenger multiple unit compared to a locomotive makes this an acceptable tradeoff for reduced mechanical complexity. Diesel-hydraulic locomotives are slightly more efficient than diesel-electrics, but were found in many countries to be mechanically more complicated and more likely to break down. In Germany, however, diesel-hydraulic systems achieved extremely high reliability in operation. Persistent argument continues over the relative reliability of hydraulic engines, with continuing questions over whether data was manipulated politically to favour local suppliers over German ones. In the US and Canada, they are now greatly outnumbered by diesel-electric locomotives, while they remain dominant in some European countries. The most famous diesel-hydraulic locomotive is the German V200 which were built from 1953 in a total number of 136. The only diesel-electric locomotives of the Deutsche Bundesbahn were BR 288 (V 188), of which 12 were built in 1939 by the DRG. The high reliability of the German locomotives was paralleled by higher reliability of non-German locomotives built with German-made parts compared to that of the same designs built using parts made locally to German patterns under licence. Much of the unreliability experienced outside Germany was due to poor quality control in the local manufacture of engines and transmissions, and poor maintenance due to staff used to steam locomotives working on unfamiliar and much more complex designs in unsuitable conditions and failing to follow the unit-replacement maintenance methods which were part of the German success. It is notable that diesel-hydraulic multiple units, with the advantages of modern manufacturing techniques and improved maintenance procedures, are now extremely successful in widespread use, achieving excellent reliability.

Gas turbine-electric

DRG] Main article: Gas turbine-electric locomotive Locomotives powered by gas turbines were developed in many countries in the decades after World War II. These used jet-type engines (similar to the turboshaft engines in a turbine helicopter) driving an output shaft. The normal method of transmitting power to the wheels involved an electrical transmission similar to a diesel-electric locomotive - the turbines running at constant speed driving a generator, feeding to large electric motors driving the wheels. Gas turbine locomotives are very powerful, but also very noisy (they sounded similar to a jet aircraft at takeoff). Union Pacific operated the largest fleet of turbine locomotives and used them extensively, at one point claiming that the turbines hauled 10% of the railroad's freight. Their efficiency was quite low, but this was initially not a problem; Union Pacific's gas turbines were fueled with cheap 'Bunker C' (later No.6) heavy fuel oil. This cheap fuel source vanished when improved refinery techniques allowed it to be 'cracked' into lighter petroleum grades. After the oil crisis in the 1970s and the subsequent rise in fuel costs, gas turbine locomotives became uneconomic to operate, and many were taken out of service. This type of locomotive is now rare.

Electric

Main article: Electric locomotive Electric locomotive The electric locomotive is supplied externally with electric power, either through an overhead pickup or through a third-rail. While the cost of electrifying track is rather high, electric trains and locomotives are significantly cheaper to run than diesel ones, and are capable of superior acceleration as well as regenerative braking, making them ideal for passenger service in densely populated areas. Almost all high speed train systems (e.g. ICE, TGV, Shinkansen) use electric power, because the power needed for such performance is not easily carried on board. For example the most powerful electric locomotives that are used today on the channel tunnel freight services use 7 MW of power. The world speed record for a wheeled train was set in 1990 by a French TGV which reached a speed of 515.3 km/h (320 mph). While recently designed electrified railway systems invariably operate on alternating current, many existing direct current systems are still in use—e.g. in South Africa, Spain, and the United Kingdom (750 V and 1500 V); Netherlands (1500 V); Belgium, Italy, Poland (3000 V), and the cities of Mumbai and Chicago, Illinois (which will be switched to AC by 2025). A small number of electric locomotives can also operate off battery power to enable short journeys or shunting to occur on non-electrified lines or yards. Pure battery locomotives also found usage in mines and other underground workings where diesel fumes or smoke are not safe and where external electricity supplies could not be used. Battery locomotives are also used on many underground railways for maintenance operations as they are required to operate in areas where the electricity supply has been temporarily disconnected. See also: Railway electrification system

Electro-diesel

Main article: Electro-diesel locomotive These are special locomotives that can either operate as an electric locomotive or a diesel locomotive. Dual-mode diesel-electric/third-rail locomotives are operated by the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad between non-electrified territory and New York City because of a local law banning diesel-powered locomotives in Manhattan tunnels. For the same reason Amtrak operates a fleet of dual-mode locomotives in the New York area. British Rail operated dual diesel-electric/electric locomotives designed to run primarily as electric locomotives. This allowed railway yards to remain un-electrified as the third-rail power system is extremely hazardous in a yard area.

Magnetic levitation

third-rail The newest technology in trains is magnetic levitation (maglev). These electrically powered trains have a special open motor which floats the train above the rail without the need for wheels. This greatly reduces friction. Very few systems are in service and the cost is very high. The experimental Japanese magnetic levitation train has reached 552 km/h (343 mph). The transrapid maglev train connects Shanghai's airport with the city. The first commercial maglev trains ran in the 1980s in Birmingham, United Kingdom, providing a low-speed shuttle service between the airport and its railway station. Despite the huge interest and excitement in the technology it was abandoned and replaced by a cable-hauled guideway a few years later.

Classification by use

The three main categories of locomotives are often subdivided in their usage in rail transport operations. There are passenger locomotives, freight locomotives and switcher (or shunting) locomotives. These categories mainly depend on manoeuvrability, traction power and speed. Some locomotives are designed to work in mountain railways.

References

[http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/11164 An engineer's guide from 1891] [http://www.keveney.com/Locomotive.html Animated engines, Steam Locomotive] 1 Locomotive Category:Rail transport ja:機関車 ko:기관차

Roman Abt

Carl Roman Abt ( 16 July 1850 - 1 May 1933, Lucerne) was a Swiss mechanical engineer who invented the Abt rack system for rack railways. Abt, Carl Roman Abt, Carl Roman Abt, Carl Roman

Mount Pilatus

Mount Pilatus (Pilatus Kulm) is a mountain near Lucerne, Switzerland. Jurisdiction over the mountain is divided up between the cantons of Obwalden, Nidwalden, and Lucerne. The peak is in Obwalden right on the border with Nidwalden. The top can be reached with Pilatus Railway, the world’s steepest cog railway from Alpnachstad, operating from May to November (depending on snow conditions), and the whole year with the aerial tramway from Kriens. During the summer, a popular route for tourists involves taking a boat from Lucerne across Lake Lucerne to Alpnachstad, going up on the cog railway, coming down on the aerial tramway, and taking a bus back to Lucerne. Pilatus was named after a local legend that Pontius Pilate was buried there.

External link

- http://www.pilatus.ch Pilatus Pilatus

Steam locomotive

Origins

Benefits of locomotives

Classification by motive power

Steam

External links

- [http://www.steamlocomotive.com/ Database of surviving steam locomotives in North America]
- [http://steamrailroading.com/ Information on North American steam railroads in operation]

Cog railway

Rack systems

Cog locomotives

List of cog and rack railways

Australia

Austria

Brazil

France

Germany

Greece

Hungary

India

Italy

Japan

New Zealand

Spain

Switzerland

United Kingdom

United States

In fiction

See also

Mountain railway

List of mountain railways

Australia

Austria

Brazil

China

France

Germany

India

Italy

Japan

New Zealand

Spain

Switzerland

United Kingdom

Isle of Man

United States

See also

Rail tracks

Railway rail

Axle load

Jointed track

Continuous welded rail

Methods of fixing rail to sleepers/ties

Track maintenance

U.S. track classes

History

See also

Train

Types of trains

Motive power

Passenger trains

See also

Freight trains

Famous train routes

Fictional trains

See also

Further reading

External links

Gear

See also

Locomotive

Origins

Benefits of locomotives

Classification by motive power

Steam

See also

External links

Diesel-mechanical

Diesel-electric

Diesel-hydraulic

Gas turbine-electric

Electric

Electro-diesel

Magnetic levitation

Classification by use

See also

References

Roman Abt