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Narrow-gauge railway

May 04, 2023

A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in). Most narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm (1 ft 11+5⁄8 in) and 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in).

Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structure gauges, and lighter rails, they can be less costly to build, equip, and operate than standard- or broad-gauge railways (particularly in mountainous or difficult terrain).[1] Lower-cost narrow-gauge railways are often used in mountainous terrain, where engineering savings can be substantial. Lower-cost narrow-gauge railways are often built to serve industries as well as sparsely populated communities where the traffic potential would not justify the cost of a standard- or broad-gauge line. Narrow-gauge railways have specialised use in mines and other environments where a small structure gauge necessitates a small loading gauge.

In some countries, narrow gauge is the standard; Japan, Indonesia, Taiwan, New Zealand, South Africa, and the Australian states of Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania have a 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge, whereas Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand have metre-gauge railways. Narrow-gauge trams, particularly metre-gauge, are common in Europe. Non-industrial, narrow-gauge mountain railways are (or were) common in the Rocky Mountains of the United States and the Pacific Cordillera of Canada, Mexico, Switzerland, Bulgaria, the former Yugoslavia, Greece, and Costa Rica.

Nomenclature

Main article: Track gauge

A narrow-gauge railway is one where the distance between the inside edges of the rails is less than 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in).[2] Historically, the term was sometimes used to refer to standard-gauge railways, to distinguish them from broad-gauge railways, but this use no longer applies.

History

Early hand-worked lines

 
1556 woodcut from De re metallica, showing a narrow-gauge railway in a mine

The earliest recorded railway appears in Georgius Agricola's 1556 De re metallica, which shows a mine in Bohemia with a railway of about 2 ft (610 mm) gauge. During the 16th century, railways were primarily restricted to hand-pushed, narrow-gauge lines in mines throughout Europe. In the 17th century, mine railways were extended to provide transportation above ground. These lines were industrial, connecting mines with nearby transportation points (usually canals or other waterways). These railways were usually built to the same narrow gauge as the mine railways from which they developed.[3]

Introduction of steam

The world's first steam locomotive, built in 1802 by Richard Trevithick for the Coalbrookdale Company, ran on a 3 ft (914 mm) plateway. The first commercially successful steam locomotive was Matthew Murray's Salamanca built in 1812 for the 4 ft 1 in (1,245 mm) Middleton Railway in Leeds.[4] Salamanca was also the first rack-and-pinion locomotive. During the 1820s and 1830s, a number of industrial narrow-gauge railways in the United Kingdom used steam locomotives. In 1842, the first narrow-gauge steam locomotive outside the UK was built for the 1,100 mm (3 ft 7+5⁄16 in)-gauge Antwerp-Ghent Railway in Belgium.[5] The first use of steam locomotives on a public, passenger-carrying narrow-gauge railway was in 1865, when the Ffestiniog Railway introduced passenger service after receiving its first locomotives two years earlier.[6]

Industrial use

Many narrow-gauge railways were part of industrial enterprises and served primarily as industrial railways, rather than general carriers. Common uses for these industrial narrow-gauge railways included mining, logging, construction, tunnelling, quarrying, and conveying agricultural products. Extensive narrow-gauge networks were constructed in many parts of the world; 19th-century mountain logging operations often used narrow-gauge railways to transport logs from mill to market. Significant sugarcane railways still operate in Cuba, Fiji, Java, the Philippines, and Queensland, and narrow-gauge railway equipment remains in common use for building tunnels.

Introduction of internal combustion

In 1897, a manganese mine in the Lahn valley in Germany was using two benzine-fueled locomotives with single cylinder internal combustion engines on the 500mm gauge tracks of their mine railway; these locomotives were made by the Deutz Gas Engine Company (Gasmotorenfabrik Deutz), now Deutz AG.[7][8] Another early use of internal combustion was to power a narrow-gauge locomotive was in 1902. F. C. Blake built a 7 hp petrol locomotive for the Richmond Main Sewerage Board sewage plant at Mortlake. This 2 ft 9 in (838 mm) gauge locomotive was probably the third petrol-engined locomotive built.[9]

First World War and later

Extensive narrow-gauge rail systems served the front-line trenches of both sides in World War I.[10][11] They were a short-lived military application, and after the war the surplus equipment created a small boom in European narrow-gauge railway building.

Improvements

Heavy-duty tracks

 
An Electric Tilt Train in Queensland. Unlike other states in Australia which use different gauges, Queensland's network is made up of 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)-gauge track.

The heavy-duty 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) narrow-gauge railways in Australia (Queensland), New Zealand, South Africa, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and the Philippines demonstrate that if track is built to a heavy-duty standard, performance almost as good as a standard-gauge line is possible.

Two-hundred-car trains operate on the Sishen–Saldanha railway line in South Africa, and high-speed Tilt Trains run in Queensland. In South Africa and New Zealand, the loading gauge is similar to the restricted British loading gauge; in New Zealand, some British Rail Mark 2 carriages have been rebuilt with new bogies for use by Tranz Scenic (Wellington-Palmerston North service), Tranz Metro (Wellington-Masterton service), and Auckland One Rail (Auckland suburban services).

Another example of a heavy-duty narrow-gauge line is Brazil's EFVM. 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) gauge, it has over-100-pound rail (100 lb/yd or 49.6 kg/m) and a loading gauge almost as large as US non-excess-height lines. The line has a number of 4,000-horsepower (3,000 kW) locomotives and 200-plus-car trains.

Fastest trains

Narrow gauge's reduced stability means that its trains cannot run at speeds as high as on broader gauges. For example, if a curve with standard-gauge rail (1435 mm) can allow speed up to 145 km/h (90 mph), the same curve with narrow-gauge rail (1067mm) can only allow speed up to 130 km/h (81 mph).[12]

In Japan and Queensland, recent permanent-way improvements have allowed trains on 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge tracks to exceed 160 km/h (99 mph). Queensland Rail's Electric Tilt Train, the fastest train in Australia and the fastest 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge train in the world, set a record of 210 km/h (130 mph).[13] The speed record for 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) narrow-gauge rail is 245 km/h (152 mph), set in South Africa in 1978.[14][15][16]

A special 2 ft (610 mm) gauge railcar was built for the Otavi Mining and Railway Company with a design speed of 137 km/h (85 mph).[17] Curve radius is also important for high speeds: narrow-gauge railways allow sharper curves, but these limit a vehicle's safe speed.

Gauges

See also: List of track gauges

Many narrow gauges, from 15 in (381 mm) gauge and 4 ft 8 in (1,422 mm) gauge, are in present or former use. They fall into several broad categories:

Just under standard gauge

Main articles: List of 4 ft 8 in gauge railways and 4 ft 8 in gauge railways

4 ft 7+3⁄4 in (1,416 mm)

4 ft 6 in gauge

Main article: 4 ft 6 in gauge railway

4 ft 6 in (1,372 mm) track gauge (also known as Scotch gauge) was adopted by early 19th-century railways, primarily in the Lanarkshire area of Scotland. 4 ft 6+1⁄2 in (1,384 mm) lines were also constructed, and both were eventually converted to standard gauge.

Around 4 ft gauge

4 ft 1 in (1,245 mm)

4 ft (1,219 mm)

1,200 mm (3 ft 11+1⁄4 in)

3 ft 9+1⁄2 in (1,156 mm)

3 ft 9 in (1,143 mm)

1093 mm gauge

3 ft 6 in gauge

Main article: 3 ft 6 in gauge railways
 
Comparison of 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge (blue) and 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) (red) width; the difference is 14.5 in (370 mm), or about 26 per cent of standard gauge.

1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) between the inside of the rail heads, its name and classification vary worldwide and it has about 112,000 kilometres (70,000 mi) of track.

Similar gauges

  • 1,055 mm (3 ft 5+1⁄2 in) in Algeria
  • 1,050 mm (3 ft 5+11⁄32 in) on the Hejaz railway in Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and Syria; only a few lines survive.

Metre gauge and Italian metre gauge

Main article: Metre gauge

As its name implies, metre gauge is a track gauge of 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in). It has about 95,000 km (59,000 mi) of track.

According to Italian law, track gauges in Italy were defined from the centre of each rail rather than the inside edges of the rails. This gauge, measured 950 mm (3 ft 1+3⁄8 in) between the edges of the rails, is known as Italian metre gauge.

3 ft, 900 mm, and Swedish three-foot gauge

 
The 3 ft (914 mm) gauge Disneyland Railroad in California
Main articles: 3 ft gauge railways, 900 mm gauge railways, and Swedish three foot gauge railways

There were a number of large 3 ft (914 mm) railroad systems in North America; notable examples include the Denver & Rio Grande and Rio Grande Southern in Colorado and the South Pacific Coast, White Pass and Yukon Route and West Side Lumber Co of California. 3 ft was also a common track gauge in South America, Ireland and on the Isle of Man. 900 mm was a common gauge in Europe. Swedish three-foot-gauge railways (891 mm or 2 ft 11+3⁄32 in) are unique to that country.

2 ft 9 in gauge

A few railways and tramways were built to 2 ft 9 in (838 mm) gauge, including Nankai Main Line (later converted to 3 ft 6 in or 1,067 mm), Ocean Pier Railway at Atlantic City, Seaton Tramway (converted from 2 ft) and Waiorongomai Tramway.

800 mm, 2 ft 6 in, Bosnian and 750 mm gauge

Main articles: 800 mm gauge railways, 2 ft 6 in gauge railways, and 750 mm gauge railways

800 mm (2 ft 7+1⁄2 in) gauge railways are commonly used for rack railways. Imperial 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge railways were generally constructed in the former British colonies. 760 mm Bosnian gauge and 750 mm railways are predominantly found in Russia and Eastern Europe.

Between 2 ft 5 in (737 mm) and 2 ft 1 in (635 mm) gauge

Main article: List of 2 ft 3 in gauge railways

Gauges such as 2 ft 3 in (686 mm), 2 ft 4 in (711 mm) and 2 ft 4+1⁄2 in (724 mm) were used in parts of the UK, particularly for railways in Wales and the borders, with some industrial use in the coal industry. Some sugar cane lines in Cuba were 2 ft 3+1⁄2 in (699 mm).[20]

2 ft and 600 mm gauges

 
The 1 ft 11+1⁄2 in (597 mm) gauge Ffestiniog Railway in Wales
Main article: 2 ft and 600 mm gauge railways

2 ft (610 mm) gauge railways were generally constructed in the former British colonies. The U.S. had a number of railways of that gauge, including several in the state of Maine such as the Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Railway. 1 ft 11+3⁄4 in (603 mm), 600 mm (1 ft 11+5⁄8 in) and 1 ft 11+1⁄2 in (597 mm) were used in Europe.

Minimum gauge

Main article: Minimum-gauge railway

Gauges below 1 ft 11+1⁄2 in (597 mm) were rare. Arthur Percival Heywood developed 15 in (381 mm) gauge estate railways in Britain and Decauville produced a range of industrial railways running on 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) and 400 mm (15+3⁄4 in) tracks, most commonly in restricted environments such as underground mine railways, parks and farms, in France. Several 18 in (457 mm) gauge railways were built in Britain to serve ammunition depots and other military facilities, particularly during World War I.

See also

References

  1. ^ Spooner, Charles Easton (1879). Narrow Gauge Railways. p. 71.
  2. ^ Coulls, Anthony (15 April 2018). Narrow Gauge Locomotives. Amberley Publishing. Narrow gauge is defined as anything less than the standard gauge of UK main lines
  3. ^ Whitehouse, Patrick & Snell, John B. (1984). Narrow Gauge Railways of the British Isles. ISBN 0-7153-0196-9.
  4. ^ Dawson, Anthony (17 June 2020). Before Rocket: The Steam Locomotive up to 1829. Gresley.
  5. ^ Ransom, P.J.G. (1996). Narrow Gauge Steam – Its origins and worldwide development. Oxford Publishing Co. ISBN 0-86093-533-7.
  6. ^ Quine, Dan (2013). The George England locomotives of the Ffestiniog Railway. London: Flexiscale.
  7. ^ A Benzine Lgocomotive for use in Mines, The Petroleum Industrial and Technical Review, vol. 2, no. 68 (23 June 1900); page 388.
  8. ^ Benzine Locomotive, English Mechanic and World of Science, No. 1713 (21 January 1898); pages 532–533.
  9. ^ Quine, Dan (March 2019). "F.C. Blake and the Mortlake Tramways". Industrial Railway Record. the Industrial Railway Society (236).
  10. ^ Dunn, Richard (1 January 1990). Narrow gauge to no man's land: U.S. Army 60 cm gauge railways of the First World War in France. Benchmark Publications.
  11. ^ Westwood, J. N. (1980). Railways at War. Howell-North Books.
  12. ^ "日刊 動労千葉". doro-chiba.org (in Japanese).
  13. ^ (PDF). Queensland Rail. 1999. pp. 16, 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 September 2009.
  14. ^ . Speed Record Club. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  15. ^ . home.intekom.com. Archived from the original on 15 June 2008.
  16. ^ "Pantograph testing in South Africa". Traintesting.com. from the original on 28 February 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
  17. ^ Shaw, Frederic J. (1958). Little Railways of the World. Howell-North.
  18. ^ Eisenbahnatlas Schweiz. Verlag Schweers + Wall GmbH. 2012. pp. 14–15. ISBN 978-3-89494-130-7.
  19. ^ Robertson, Donald B. (1986). Encyclopedia of Western Railroad History Volume IV California. Caxton Printers. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-87004-385-7.
  20. ^ [1] (2003)

Notes

  • P. Whitehouse, J. Snell. Narrow Gauge Railways of the British Isles, David & Charles, 1994, ISBN C-7153-0196-9
  • Railroads of Colorado: Your Guide to Colorado's Historic Trains and Railway Sites, Claude Wiatrowski, Voyageur Press, 2002, hardcover, 160 pages, ISBN 0-89658-591-3
  • Keith Chester. "East European Narrow Gauge" 1995
  • "Narrow Gauge Through the Bush – Ontario's Toronto Grey and Bruce and Toronto and Nipissing Railways"; Rod Clarke; pub. Beaumont and Clarke, with the Credit Valley Railway Company, Streetsville, Ontario, 2007. ISBN 978-0-9784406-0-2
  • "The Narrow Gauge For Us – The Story of the Toronto and Nipissing Railway"; Charles Cooper; pub. The Boston Mills Press; Erin, Ontario, 1982.
  • "Narrow Gauge Railways of Canada"; Omer Lavallee; pub. Railfair, Montreal, 1972.
  • "Narrow Gauge Railways of Canada"; Omer Lavallee, expanded and revised by Ronald S Ritchie; pub. Fitzhenry and Whiteside, Markham, Ontario, 2005.
  • "The Toronto Grey and Bruce Railway 1863–1884; Thomas F McIlwraith; pub. Upper Canada Railway Society, Toronto, 1963.
  • "Steam Trains to the Bruce"; Ralph Beaumont; pub. The Boston Mills Press; Cheltenham, Ontario, 1977
  • "Running Late on the Bruce"; Ralph Beaumont & James Filby; pub The Boston Mills Press, Cheltenham, Ontario, 1980
  • Nevada Central Narrow Gauge 11 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine; Michael J. Brown

May 04, 2023
narrow, gauge, railway, narrow, gauge, railway, narrow, gauge, railroad, railway, with, track, gauge, narrower, than, standard, most, narrow, gauge, railways, between, since, narrow, gauge, railways, usually, built, with, tighter, curves, smaller, structure, g. A narrow gauge railway narrow gauge railroad in the US is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard 1 435 mm 4 ft 8 1 2 in Most narrow gauge railways are between 600 mm 1 ft 11 5 8 in and 1 067 mm 3 ft 6 in Since narrow gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves smaller structure gauges and lighter rails they can be less costly to build equip and operate than standard or broad gauge railways particularly in mountainous or difficult terrain 1 Lower cost narrow gauge railways are often used in mountainous terrain where engineering savings can be substantial Lower cost narrow gauge railways are often built to serve industries as well as sparsely populated communities where the traffic potential would not justify the cost of a standard or broad gauge line Narrow gauge railways have specialised use in mines and other environments where a small structure gauge necessitates a small loading gauge In some countries narrow gauge is the standard Japan Indonesia Taiwan New Zealand South Africa and the Australian states of Queensland Western Australia and Tasmania have a 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm gauge whereas Vietnam Malaysia and Thailand have metre gauge railways Narrow gauge trams particularly metre gauge are common in Europe Non industrial narrow gauge mountain railways are or were common in the Rocky Mountains of the United States and the Pacific Cordillera of Canada Mexico Switzerland Bulgaria the former Yugoslavia Greece and Costa Rica Contents 1 Nomenclature 2 History 2 1 Early hand worked lines 2 2 Introduction of steam 2 3 Industrial use 2 4 Introduction of internal combustion 2 5 First World War and later 3 Improvements 3 1 Heavy duty tracks 3 2 Fastest trains 4 Gauges 4 1 Just under standard gauge 4 1 1 4 ft 7 3 4 in 1 416 mm 4 2 4 ft 6 in gauge 4 3 Around 4 ft gauge 4 3 1 4 ft 1 in 1 245 mm 4 3 2 4 ft 1 219 mm 4 3 3 1 200 mm 3 ft 11 1 4 in 4 4 3 ft 9 1 2 in 1 156 mm 4 4 1 3 ft 9 in 1 143 mm 4 5 1093 mm gauge 4 6 3 ft 6 in gauge 4 6 1 Similar gauges 4 7 Metre gauge and Italian metre gauge 4 8 3 ft 900 mm and Swedish three foot gauge 4 9 2 ft 9 in gauge 4 10 800 mm 2 ft 6 in Bosnian and 750 mm gauge 4 11 Between 2 ft 5 in 737 mm and 2 ft 1 in 635 mm gauge 4 12 2 ft and 600 mm gauges 4 13 Minimum gauge 5 See also 6 References 7 NotesNomenclature EditMain article Track gauge A narrow gauge railway is one where the distance between the inside edges of the rails is less than 1 435 mm 4 ft 8 1 2 in 2 Historically the term was sometimes used to refer to standard gauge railways to distinguish them from broad gauge railways but this use no longer applies History EditEarly hand worked lines Edit 1556 woodcut from De re metallica showing a narrow gauge railway in a mine The earliest recorded railway appears in Georgius Agricola s 1556 De re metallica which shows a mine in Bohemia with a railway of about 2 ft 610 mm gauge During the 16th century railways were primarily restricted to hand pushed narrow gauge lines in mines throughout Europe In the 17th century mine railways were extended to provide transportation above ground These lines were industrial connecting mines with nearby transportation points usually canals or other waterways These railways were usually built to the same narrow gauge as the mine railways from which they developed 3 Introduction of steam Edit The world s first steam locomotive built in 1802 by Richard Trevithick for the Coalbrookdale Company ran on a 3 ft 914 mm plateway The first commercially successful steam locomotive was Matthew Murray s Salamanca built in 1812 for the 4 ft 1 in 1 245 mm Middleton Railway in Leeds 4 Salamanca was also the first rack and pinion locomotive During the 1820s and 1830s a number of industrial narrow gauge railways in the United Kingdom used steam locomotives In 1842 the first narrow gauge steam locomotive outside the UK was built for the 1 100 mm 3 ft 7 5 16 in gauge Antwerp Ghent Railway in Belgium 5 The first use of steam locomotives on a public passenger carrying narrow gauge railway was in 1865 when the Ffestiniog Railway introduced passenger service after receiving its first locomotives two years earlier 6 Industrial use Edit Many narrow gauge railways were part of industrial enterprises and served primarily as industrial railways rather than general carriers Common uses for these industrial narrow gauge railways included mining logging construction tunnelling quarrying and conveying agricultural products Extensive narrow gauge networks were constructed in many parts of the world 19th century mountain logging operations often used narrow gauge railways to transport logs from mill to market Significant sugarcane railways still operate in Cuba Fiji Java the Philippines and Queensland and narrow gauge railway equipment remains in common use for building tunnels Introduction of internal combustion Edit In 1897 a manganese mine in the Lahn valley in Germany was using two benzine fueled locomotives with single cylinder internal combustion engines on the 500mm gauge tracks of their mine railway these locomotives were made by the Deutz Gas Engine Company Gasmotorenfabrik Deutz now Deutz AG 7 8 Another early use of internal combustion was to power a narrow gauge locomotive was in 1902 F C Blake built a 7 hp petrol locomotive for the Richmond Main Sewerage Board sewage plant at Mortlake This 2 ft 9 in 838 mm gauge locomotive was probably the third petrol engined locomotive built 9 First World War and later Edit Extensive narrow gauge rail systems served the front line trenches of both sides in World War I 10 11 They were a short lived military application and after the war the surplus equipment created a small boom in European narrow gauge railway building Improvements EditHeavy duty tracks Edit An Electric Tilt Train in Queensland Unlike other states in Australia which use different gauges Queensland s network is made up of 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm gauge track The heavy duty 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm narrow gauge railways in Australia Queensland New Zealand South Africa Japan Taiwan Indonesia and the Philippines demonstrate that if track is built to a heavy duty standard performance almost as good as a standard gauge line is possible Two hundred car trains operate on the Sishen Saldanha railway line in South Africa and high speed Tilt Trains run in Queensland In South Africa and New Zealand the loading gauge is similar to the restricted British loading gauge in New Zealand some British Rail Mark 2 carriages have been rebuilt with new bogies for use by Tranz Scenic Wellington Palmerston North service Tranz Metro Wellington Masterton service and Auckland One Rail Auckland suburban services Another example of a heavy duty narrow gauge line is Brazil s EFVM 1 000 mm 3 ft 3 3 8 in gauge it has over 100 pound rail 100 lb yd or 49 6 kg m and a loading gauge almost as large as US non excess height lines The line has a number of 4 000 horsepower 3 000 kW locomotives and 200 plus car trains Fastest trains Edit Narrow gauge s reduced stability means that its trains cannot run at speeds as high as on broader gauges For example if a curve with standard gauge rail 1435 mm can allow speed up to 145 km h 90 mph the same curve with narrow gauge rail 1067mm can only allow speed up to 130 km h 81 mph 12 In Japan and Queensland recent permanent way improvements have allowed trains on 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm gauge tracks to exceed 160 km h 99 mph Queensland Rail s Electric Tilt Train the fastest train in Australia and the fastest 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm gauge train in the world set a record of 210 km h 130 mph 13 The speed record for 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm narrow gauge rail is 245 km h 152 mph set in South Africa in 1978 14 15 16 A special 2 ft 610 mm gauge railcar was built for the Otavi Mining and Railway Company with a design speed of 137 km h 85 mph 17 Curve radius is also important for high speeds narrow gauge railways allow sharper curves but these limit a vehicle s safe speed Gauges EditSee also List of track gauges Many narrow gauges from 15 in 381 mm gauge and 4 ft 8 in 1 422 mm gauge are in present or former use They fall into several broad categories Just under standard gauge Edit Main articles List of 4 ft 8 in gauge railways and 4 ft 8 in gauge railways 4 ft 7 3 4 in 1 416 mm Edit Huddersfield Corporation Tramways Glasgow Corporation Tramways4 ft 6 in gauge Edit Main article 4 ft 6 in gauge railway 4 ft 6 in 1 372 mm track gauge also known as Scotch gauge was adopted by early 19th century railways primarily in the Lanarkshire area of Scotland 4 ft 6 1 2 in 1 384 mm lines were also constructed and both were eventually converted to standard gauge Around 4 ft gauge Edit 4 ft 1 in 1 245 mm Edit Middleton Railway4 ft 1 219 mm Edit Barrow in Furness Tramways Company Bradford Corporation Tramways City of Oxford Tramways Company Darwen Corporation Tramways Derby Tramways Company Falkirk and District Tramways Glasgow Subway Honolulu Rapid Transit and Land Company Keighley Tramways Padarn Railway Reading Corporation Tramways Redruth and Chasewater Railway Saundersfoot Railway Wellington tramway system 1 200 mm 3 ft 11 1 4 in Edit Central Funicular Fribourg funicular Gardena Ronda Express Rheineck Walzenhausen mountain railway Appenzell Railways 18 Schlossbergbahn Freiburg Stoosbahn Zagreb Funicular 3 ft 9 1 2 in 1 156 mm Edit Arcata and Mad River Railroad Northern Redwood Lumber Company 19 3 ft 9 in 1 143 mm Edit Middlebere Plateway1093 mm gauge Edit Koping Uttersberg Riddarhyttan Railway3 ft 6 in gauge Edit Main article 3 ft 6 in gauge railways Comparison of 4 ft 8 1 2 in 1 435 mm standard gauge blue and 3 ft 6 in 1 067 mm red width the difference is 14 5 in 370 mm or about 26 per cent of standard gauge 1 067 mm 3 ft 6 in between the inside of the rail heads its name and classification vary worldwide and it has about 112 000 kilometres 70 000 mi of track Similar gauges Edit 1 055 mm 3 ft 5 1 2 in in Algeria 1 050 mm 3 ft 5 11 32 in on the Hejaz railway in Israel Jordan Lebanon Saudi Arabia and Syria only a few lines survive Metre gauge and Italian metre gauge Edit Main article Metre gauge As its name implies metre gauge is a track gauge of 1 000 mm 3 ft 3 3 8 in It has about 95 000 km 59 000 mi of track According to Italian law track gauges in Italy were defined from the centre of each rail rather than the inside edges of the rails This gauge measured 950 mm 3 ft 1 3 8 in between the edges of the rails is known as Italian metre gauge 3 ft 900 mm and Swedish three foot gauge Edit The 3 ft 914 mm gauge Disneyland Railroad in California Main articles 3 ft gauge railways 900 mm gauge railways and Swedish three foot gauge railways There were a number of large 3 ft 914 mm railroad systems in North America notable examples include the Denver amp Rio Grande and Rio Grande Southern in Colorado and the South Pacific Coast White Pass and Yukon Route and West Side Lumber Co of California 3 ft was also a common track gauge in South America Ireland and on the Isle of Man 900 mm was a common gauge in Europe Swedish three foot gauge railways 891 mm or 2 ft 11 3 32 in are unique to that country 2 ft 9 in gauge Edit A few railways and tramways were built to 2 ft 9 in 838 mm gauge including Nankai Main Line later converted to 3 ft 6 in or 1 067 mm Ocean Pier Railway at Atlantic City Seaton Tramway converted from 2 ft and Waiorongomai Tramway 800 mm 2 ft 6 in Bosnian and 750 mm gauge Edit Main articles 800 mm gauge railways 2 ft 6 in gauge railways and 750 mm gauge railways 800 mm 2 ft 7 1 2 in gauge railways are commonly used for rack railways Imperial 2 ft 6 in 762 mm gauge railways were generally constructed in the former British colonies 760 mm Bosnian gauge and 750 mm railways are predominantly found in Russia and Eastern Europe Between 2 ft 5 in 737 mm and 2 ft 1 in 635 mm gauge Edit Main article List of 2 ft 3 in gauge railways Gauges such as 2 ft 3 in 686 mm 2 ft 4 in 711 mm and 2 ft 4 1 2 in 724 mm were used in parts of the UK particularly for railways in Wales and the borders with some industrial use in the coal industry Some sugar cane lines in Cuba were 2 ft 3 1 2 in 699 mm 20 2 ft and 600 mm gauges Edit The 1 ft 11 1 2 in 597 mm gauge Ffestiniog Railway in Wales Main article 2 ft and 600 mm gauge railways 2 ft 610 mm gauge railways were generally constructed in the former British colonies The U S had a number of railways of that gauge including several in the state of Maine such as the Wiscasset Waterville and Farmington Railway 1 ft 11 3 4 in 603 mm 600 mm 1 ft 11 5 8 in and 1 ft 11 1 2 in 597 mm were used in Europe Minimum gauge Edit Main article Minimum gauge railway Gauges below 1 ft 11 1 2 in 597 mm were rare Arthur Percival Heywood developed 15 in 381 mm gauge estate railways in Britain and Decauville produced a range of industrial railways running on 500 mm 19 3 4 in and 400 mm 15 3 4 in tracks most commonly in restricted environments such as underground mine railways parks and farms in France Several 18 in 457 mm gauge railways were built in Britain to serve ammunition depots and other military facilities particularly during World War I See also Edit Trains portalFeldbahn Forest railway Heeresfeldbahn Industrial railway List of track gauges List of tram systems by gauge and electrification Military railways Minimum gauge railway Narrow gauge railway modelling Narrow gauge railways in the Netherlands Narrow gauge railways in Sweden Narrow gauge railways in Europe Rail transport in Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Ridable miniature railway Track gauge Trench railways War Department Light RailwaysReferences Edit Spooner Charles Easton 1879 Narrow Gauge Railways p 71 Coulls Anthony 15 April 2018 Narrow Gauge Locomotives Amberley Publishing Narrow gauge is defined as anything less than the standard gauge of UK main lines Whitehouse Patrick amp Snell John B 1984 Narrow Gauge Railways of the British Isles ISBN 0 7153 0196 9 Dawson Anthony 17 June 2020 Before Rocket The Steam Locomotive up to 1829 Gresley Ransom P J G 1996 Narrow Gauge Steam Its origins and worldwide development Oxford Publishing Co ISBN 0 86093 533 7 Quine Dan 2013 The George England locomotives of the Ffestiniog Railway London Flexiscale A Benzine Lgocomotive for use in Mines The Petroleum Industrial and Technical Review vol 2 no 68 23 June 1900 page 388 Benzine Locomotive English Mechanic and World of Science No 1713 21 January 1898 pages 532 533 Quine Dan March 2019 F C Blake and the Mortlake Tramways Industrial Railway Record the Industrial Railway Society 236 Dunn Richard 1 January 1990 Narrow gauge to no man s land U S Army 60 cm gauge railways of the First World War in France Benchmark Publications Westwood J N 1980 Railways at War Howell North Books 日刊 動労千葉 doro chiba org in Japanese Annual Report 1998 1999 PDF Queensland Rail 1999 pp 16 19 Archived from the original PDF on 30 September 2009 Rail Speed Records Speed Record Club Archived from the original on 11 February 2012 Retrieved 10 February 2012 Class 5E 6E Electric home intekom com Archived from the original on 15 June 2008 Pantograph testing in South Africa Traintesting com Archived from the original on 28 February 2022 Retrieved 10 February 2012 Shaw Frederic J 1958 Little Railways of the World Howell North Eisenbahnatlas Schweiz Verlag Schweers Wall GmbH 2012 pp 14 15 ISBN 978 3 89494 130 7 Robertson Donald B 1986 Encyclopedia of Western Railroad History Volume IV California Caxton Printers p 166 ISBN 978 0 87004 385 7 1 2003 Notes Edit Trade House Kambarka Engineering Works P Whitehouse J Snell Narrow Gauge Railways of the British Isles David amp Charles 1994 ISBN C 7153 0196 9 Railroads of Colorado Your Guide to Colorado s Historic Trains and Railway Sites Claude Wiatrowski Voyageur Press 2002 hardcover 160 pages ISBN 0 89658 591 3 Keith Chester East European Narrow Gauge 1995 Narrow Gauge Through the Bush Ontario s Toronto Grey and Bruce and Toronto and Nipissing Railways Rod Clarke pub Beaumont and Clarke with the Credit Valley Railway Company Streetsville Ontario 2007 ISBN 978 0 9784406 0 2 The Narrow Gauge For Us The Story of the Toronto and Nipissing Railway Charles Cooper pub The Boston Mills Press Erin Ontario 1982 Narrow Gauge Railways of Canada Omer Lavallee pub Railfair Montreal 1972 Narrow Gauge Railways of Canada Omer Lavallee expanded and revised by Ronald S Ritchie pub Fitzhenry and Whiteside Markham Ontario 2005 The Toronto Grey and Bruce Railway 1863 1884 Thomas F McIlwraith pub Upper Canada Railway Society Toronto 1963 Steam Trains to the Bruce Ralph Beaumont pub The Boston Mills Press Cheltenham Ontario 1977 Running Late on the Bruce Ralph Beaumont amp James Filby pub The Boston Mills Press Cheltenham Ontario 1980 Nevada Central Narrow Gauge Archived 11 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine Michael J Brown Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Narrow gauge railway amp oldid 1151695437, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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