For this reason, most of the standard gauge railways in Europe use the standard buffers and chain coupler with some use of the buckeye coupler in the UK, for locomotive hauled vehicles, and some use Scharfenberg couplers on suburban multiple unit as well as variants of the SA3 couplers on some rolling stock, while narrow gauge railways use a variation of couplers, since they often are isolated from each other, so standardisation is not needed. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. PRODUCT PRICES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE. 3. As countries build High-speed rails, they also tend to converge these rails' gauge to standard gauge, with the exceptions of Uzbekistan and Russia. An infrastructure manager might specify new or replacement track components at a slight variation from the nominal gauge for pragmatic reasons. If an exceptional load or a new type of vehicle is being assessed to run, it is required to conform to the route's loading gauge. In Argentina, it is known as "trocha ancha" (Spanish for broad gauge). gage vs. gauge Synonym Discussion of gauge. Total for each type of gauge in 2020. In many cases narrow-gauge track is used for a temporary way because of the convenience in laying it and changing its location over unimproved ground. Rail definition is - a bar extending from one post or support to another and serving as a guard or barrier. The Stockton and Darlington line was immensely successful, and when the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, the first intercity line, was built (it opened in 1830), it used the same gauge. Lines for iron ore to Kribi in Cameroon are likely to be 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge with a likely connection to the same port from the 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge Cameroon system. [33] Older railways are of 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge or 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge. Define rail against. ALDON COMPANY, INC. On the GWR, there was an extended period between political intervention in 1846 that prevented major expansion of its 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) broad gauge[note 1] and the final gauge conversion to standard gauge in 1892. The larger railway companies wished to expand geographically, and large areas were considered to be under their control. ties.They hold the rail to gauge, providing more uniform wear to rail head and protect against undue wear to ties. The earliest form of railway was a wooden wagonway, along which single wagons were manhandled, almost always in or from a mine or quarry. Britain polarised into two areas: those that used broad gauge and those that used standard gauge. The most common minimum-gauges were 15 in (381 mm),[13] 400 mm (15 3⁄4 in), 16 in (406 mm), 18 in (457 mm), 500 mm (19 3⁄4 in) or 20 in (508 mm). A special fixed point arrangement was devised for the purpose, where the track layout was simple enough. If locomotives were imported from elsewhere, especially in the early days, the track would be built to fit them. Narrower gauge railways usually cost less to build because they are usually lighter in construction, using smaller cars and locomotives (smaller loading gauge), as well as smaller bridges, smaller tunnels (smaller structure gauge). Where a railway corridor is used by trains of two gauges, mixed gauge (or dual gauge) track can be provided, in which three rails are supported in the same track structure. The Great Western Railway (GWR) was successful and was greatly expanded, directly and through friendly associated companies, widening the scope of broad gauge. rail 1 (rāl) n. 1. a. The Great Western Railway, was designed by … Dual-gauge rail lines are used in Switzerland, Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Japan, North Korea, Spain, Tunisia and Vietnam. Taper Gauge for Rail Joints. If the difference between the two gauges is large enough, for example between 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge and 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm), three-rail dual-gauge is possible, but if not, for example between 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) and 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge, four-rail triple-gauge is used. As passenger and freight transport between the two areas became increasingly important, the difficulty of moving from one gauge to the other—the break of gauge—became more prominent and more objectionable. A line five eighths of an inch, about 15mm below the running surface of a rail on the side of the head nearest the track centre; the line from which measurements of gauge are made. It is one of the most important, commonly used and very cost effective modes of commuting and goods carriage over long, as well as, short distances. RAILS. In Japan, a few narrow-gauge lines have been upgraded to standard-gauge mini-shinkansen to allow through service by standard-gauge high-speed trains. All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. defined as the clear minimum perpendicular distance between the inner faces of the two rails. To keep the rail traffic compatible within a network, not only the track gauge needs to be the same, but also the couplers, at least for locomotive-hauled vehicles. t. e. Metre-gauge railways are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of … In this context, standard gauge was referred to as "narrow gauge" to indicate the contrast. Railway engineers use a device, like a caliper, to measure the actual gauge, and this device is also referred to as a track gauge. A steel bar used, usually in pairs, as a track for railroad cars or other wheeled vehicles. For example, the Federal Railroad Administration in the USA specifies that the actual gauge of a 1,435 mm track that is rated for a maximum of 60 mph (96.6 km/h) must be between 4 ft 8 in (1,422 mm) and 4 ft 9.5 in (1,460 mm). [16] China and Poland use standard gauge, while Central Asia and Ukraine use 1,520 mm (4 ft 11 27⁄32 in). Track BACK TO TOP. In the case of single shoulder tie plates, the shoulder is placed on the field end of the plate. 4. [27] Narrow gauges in India are being converted to broad gauge, while new standard gauge railways are being built in Africa. For lines constructed to a lower standard, speed can be increased by realigning rail lines to increase the minimum curve radius, reducing the number of intersections or introducing tilting trains. Standard gauge is dominant in a majority of countries. Both refer to two-dimensional cross-section profiles, surrounding the track and vehicles running on it. Rail gauges in Australia display significant variations, which has presented an extremely difficult problem for rail transport on the Australian continent for over 150 years. Dr N Ferguson, The Dundee and Newtyle Railway including the Alyth and Blairgowrie Branches, The Oakwood Press, 1995, Experience and results of operation the SUW 2000 system in traffic corridors at, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Regulating the Gauge of Railways Act 1846, Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles, List of tram systems by gauge and electrification, Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company, "An Act for regulating the Gauge of Railways", The Russian Railways and Imperial Intersections in the Russian Empire, "The beginning of the Great Southern and Western Railway", "Track Safety Standards Compliance Manual Chapter 5 Track Safety Standards Classes 1 through 5", "Colombia and Venezuela to build railroad", "Venezuela, Argentina begin construction of railway linking their capitals", "East Africa: Countries Move to Upgrade Railway Network", "East Africa: EAC Railway Master Plan to Be Redesigned", The Days they Changed the Gauge in the U.S. South, Juan Manuel Grijalvo – The Myth of the "Standard" Gauge, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Track_gauge&oldid=1001588094, Articles needing additional references from December 2019, All articles needing additional references, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2014, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2013, Articles needing additional references from May 2020, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2020, Articles with dead external links from August 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 2008: Venezuela via Brazil to Argentina –, This page was last edited on 20 January 2021, at 10:30. [25] Some bulk commodities, such as coal, ore, and gravel, can be mechanically transshipped, but this is time-consuming, and the equipment required for the transfer is often complex to maintain. (rail transport) The outline of the space occupied by a rail vehicle when in motion, including the effects of tilt, sway, track cant, etc. The European Union has set out to develop inter-operable freight and passenger rail networks across its area, and is seeking to standardise gauge, signalling and electrical power systems. Colloquially the wagons might be referred to as "four-foot gauge wagons", say, if the track had a gauge of four feet. The Airport Rail Link in Sydney had construction trains of 900 mm (2 ft 11 7⁄16 in) gauge, which were replaced by permanent tracks of 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) gauge. Edge rails required a close match between rail spacing and the configuration of the wheelsets, and the importance of the gauge was reinforced. He decided on a wider gauge, to give greater stability, and the Great Western Railway adopted a gauge of 7 ft (2,134 mm), later eased to 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm). Define rail. On narrow gauge lines, Rollbocks or transporter wagons are used: standard gauge wagons are carried on narrow gauge lines on these special vehicles, generally with rails of the wider gauge to enable those vehicles to roll on and off at transfer points. [21], Speed, capacity, and economy are generally objectives of rail transport, but there is often an inverse relationship between these priorities. [14], A system developed by Talgo and Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) of Spain uses variable gauge wheelsets; at the border between France and Spain, through passenger trains are drawn slowly through apparatus that alters the gauge of the wheels, which slide laterally on the axles. For example, MacDermot[18] says: In November 1871 a novelty in the shape of a mixed-gauge goods train was introduced between Truro and Penzance. In rail transport, track gauge or track gage is the spacing of the rails on a railway track and is measured between the inner faces of the load-bearing rails. This differs from country to country and some countries have routes with different gauge depending on its requirement and limitations. Gauge line definition is - a line 5/8 inch below the center of the running surface of a railroad rail along the side of the head nearer the center of track. Timber rails wore rapidly: later, flat cast-iron plates were provided to limit the wear. Solutions to interchangeability problems include bogie exchanges, a rollbock system, variable gauge, dual gauge or gauge conversion. If narrow-gauge rails are designed with potential growth in mind (or at the same standard as standard-gauge rails), obstacles to future growth would be similar to other rail gauges. In many countries, narrow-gauge railways were built as branch lines to feed traffic to standard-gauge lines due to lower construction costs. Standard gauge in the United States and Canada measures 4 ft. 8 1/2 inches. MINIMUM ORDER $30 ... We Accept VISA and MASTERCARD. In regions where narrow gauge forms a small part of the rail network (as was the case on Russia's Sakhalin Railway), extra money is needed to design, produce or import narrow-gauge equipment. When a new independent line was proposed to open up an unconnected area, the gauge was crucial in determining the allegiance that the line would adopt: if it was broad gauge, it must be friendly to the Great Western railway; if narrow (standard) gauge, it must favour the other companies. Synonym Discussion of rail. All these would encounter breaks of gauge as they cross Asia. During World War I trench warfare led to a relatively static disposition of infantry, requiring considerable logistics to bring them support staff and supplies (food, ammunition, earthworks materials, etc.). Tie plates are designed with a long end or field end to be located outside of the rails. A structure made of a rail, often connecting a series of upright members, that is used as a guard or barrier or for support, ... rail fence; rail In 1840s, the 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) Irish gauge was considered a medium gauge compared to Brunel's 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) broad gauge and the 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) narrow gauge, nowadays being standard gauge.[12]. In some localities, the plates were made L-shaped, with the vertical part of the L guiding the wheels; this is generally referred to as a "plateway". Newly rebuilt lines will use standard gauge. Sugar cane and banana plantations are mostly served by narrow gauges. The term "medium gauge" had different meanings throughout history, depending on the local dominant gauge in use. As the dominant parameter determining interoperability, it is still frequently used as a descriptor of a route or network. 5 ft 6 in / 1,676 mm, a broad gauge, is the track gauge used in India, Pakistan, western Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina, Chile, and on BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) in the San Francisco Bay Area.. As railways were built in other countries, the gauge selection was pragmatic: the track would have to fit the rolling stock. In addition to the general trade-off, another important factor is Interchangeability or standardization. If rail lines with other gauges coexist in a network, in times of peak demand it is difficult to move rolling stock to where it is needed when a break of gauge exists. This arose particularly when individual railway companies chose different gauges and were subsequently required to share a route; this is most commonly found at the approaches to city terminals, where land space is limited. It is also used in sparsely populated areas, with low potential demand, and for temporary railways that will be removed after short-term use, such as for construction, the logging industry, the mining industry, or large-scale construction projects, especially in confined spaces (see Temporary way – permanent way). The list shows the Imperial and other units that have been used for track gauge definitions: A temporary way is the temporary track often used for construction, to be replaced by the permanent way (the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers/ties and ballast (or slab track), plus the underlying subgrade) when construction nears completion. A structure made of such bars and supports and forming a barrier or guard; a railing. A considerable progressive step was made when cast iron edge rails were first employed; these had the major axis of the rail section configured vertically, giving a much stronger section to resist bending forces, and this was further improved when fish-belly rails were introduced.[3]. Many narrow gauge railways were built in mountainous regions such as Wales, the Rocky Mountains of North America, Central Europe and South America. rail synonyms, rail pronunciation, rail translation, English dictionary definition of rail. For routes with high traffic, greater capacity may more than offset the higher initial cost of construction. Conformance ensures that traffic will not collide with lineside structures. It was also hugely successful, and the gauge (now eased to 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in or 1,435 mm[8]), became the automatic choice: "standard gauge". Rolling stock on the network must have running gear (wheelsets) that are compatible with the gauge, and therefore the gauge is a key parameter in determining interoperability, but there are many others – see below. What are the different Gauges and Scales? This also makes it easier to adopt an existing standard than to invent a new one. At the same time, other parts of Britain built railways to standard gauge, and British technology was exported to European countries and parts of North America, also using standard gauge. 2. Out of gauge train Class B (Lü Berta) The load reaches over the middle of the space between two adjacent tracks. A bar extending horizontally between supports, as in a fence. For rail gauge in particular, break-of-gauge often causes inefficiency far in excess of the merits of any particular gauge. 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