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Portals → Technology → Transport → Trains
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In rail transport, a train is a vehicle or (more frequently) a string of vehicles capable of being moved along a continuous line of rails or other guideway for the purpose of conveying freight or passengers between points on a predetermined route. The train may be hauled or propelled by one or more vehicles designed exclusively for that purpose (locomotives) or may be driven by a number of motors incorporated in all or several of the vehicles. |
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Rail transport • Operations • Stations • Trains • Locomotives • Rolling stock • History/Timeline • Rail terminology • By country • Disasters • Modelling
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The Berlin U-Bahn (Untergrundbahn, English: underground railway) is a major part of the public transport system of the German capital, Berlin. Opened in 1902, the U-Bahn serves 170 stations spread across nine lines, with a total track length of 151.7 kilometres (94.3 mi), about 80% of which is underground. Trains run every two to five minutes during peak hours, and every seven to twelve minutes for the rest of the day; they travel 132 million km (83 million mi), carrying 400 million passengers, over the year. The entire system is maintained and operated by the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe, commonly known as the BVG. Designed to alleviate traffic flowing into and out of central Berlin, the U-Bahn rapidly expanded until the city was divided into East and West Berlin at the end of World War II. Although the system initially remained open to residents of both sides, the construction of the Berlin Wall and the subsequent restrictions imposed by the East German government limited travel across the border: The East Berlin U-Bahn lines were severed from West Berlin; while two West Berlin lines that ran through East Berlin were allowed to pass through without stopping, although the stations were closed, with the exception of Friedrichstraße, used as a transfer point and a border crossing into East Berlin. The system was reopened completely following the fall of the Berlin Wall, and German reunification. As of 2007, the Berlin U-Bahn is the most extensive underground network in Germany. True to its original goal, it has been calculated that, in 2006, use of the U-Bahn amounted to the equivalent of 122.2 million km (76 million mi) of car journeys. Now thoroughly modernised after years of neglect during the Cold War, it serves as the main transportation method of the capital.
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Preserved LMS Fowler class 3F Jinty 0-6-0T, operating on 5 July 2005, on the Spa Valley Railway in southeast England. Introduced in 1924 and retired from active service by 1967, the 3F class represents the ultimate development of the Midland Railway's six-coupled tank engines.
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- ...that the Ferrovie dello Stato (Italian State Railways) Class D443 locomotives, built in the 1960s to replace aging steam locomotives which were used for heavy freight trains on light, non-electrified lines, are still in service today?
- ...that the 4,234-kilometre (2,631 mi) long Baikal Amur Mainline traversing Eastern Siberia and the Russian Far East was built as a strategic alternative route to the Trans-Siberian Railway, especially along the vulnerable sections close to the border with China?
- ...that the San Francisco Bay Area in California will have a new direct rail to ferry connection when the Hercules intermodal rail station and WETA ferry terminal is constructed?
- ...that various members of the London Midland and Scottish Railway 'Black 5' locomotive class had many design variations and modifications, including domed and domeless boilers, different valve gear (including Caprotti, Walschaerts, and Stephenson), roller bearings on the driving coupled axles (both Timken and Skefco types) and an experimental steel firebox?
- 1828 – The 67-kilometre (42 mi) Andrézieux-Roanne line is authorized in France.
- 1867 – J. Nason and J. F. Wilson, both of Boston, Massachusetts, are awarded the first U.S. patent covering level crossing gates.
- 1956 – Pacific Great Eastern Railway, in British Columbia, holds official opening ceremonies to celebrate the beginning of service over its line (which occurred on June 11, 1956).
- 1993 – The Green Bay and Western Railroad and the Fox River Valley Railroad are merged into a new Wisconsin Central Transportation subsidiary, the Fox Valley and Western Railroad.
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August 20 – The Argentine Ambassador to Venezuela Alicia Castro and Venezuelan Infrastructure Minister Isidro Rondon preside over ceremonies at La Rinconada station in Caracas to officially launch a project that will connect the capitals of the two nations by rail. In a speech at the ceremony, Rondon called the line that would travel southward from Caracas through Brazil to Buenos Aires, "a realizable utopia." The three nations' governments hope the new line would encourage trade and foster further integration between them. (Xinhua)
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August 19 – Norges Statsbaner orderes 50 Flirt electric multiple units from Stadler Rail. Delivery for the five-car units will start in 2012, costing NOK 4 billion. The trains will be used as part of the Oslo Commuter Rail and on intercity services. (NRK) (NSB)
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August 17 – Shanghai-Hangzhou Maglev Train construction to begin in 2010. Shanghai-Hangzhou maglev project will be 199.43 km long, nearly 25 km longer than previously reported. Preparatory work should be done by the end of this year. (CRI) (China Daily)
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August 13 – Under the direction of Schenectady's City Historian, construction workers excavate a portion of one of the first railway tunnels in the United States. Eventually, plans are for a portion of the tunnel to be restored and opened for public display. The tunnel was initially dug in 1832, providing a 1,500-foot (460 m) passage through which horse-drawn trains traveled; the tunnel was closed and filled in 1838. It is believed that the original track through the tunnel remains in place but further excavation will be needed to determine this. (Newsday)
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August 8 – A EuroCity train, traveling at 134 km/h (83 mph) en route from Kraków, Poland, to Prague, Czech Republic, collides with a bridge that had collapsed onto the track in front of the train near Studénka. Some initial reports indicate that part of the bridge fell onto the train while others state that the bridge was already collapsed. The bridge was still under construction at the time of the accident. At least ten people have died in the accident, and about 100 others aboard the train were injured. About 400 people were aboard the train. (AP/MSNBC) (RTÉ News)
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August 1 – Officials in China hold two opening ceremonies, one in Beijing and another in Tianjin, to officially open the Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway line. The opening makes the new line the first in the world to regularly host trains traveling up to 350 km/h (220 mph). The first regular service train departed Beijing South Station at 10:40 AM local time, while another train left Tianjin at 10:42 AM. (BBC) (Xinhua) (TimesOnline)
WikiProject Trains (Shortcut: WP:TWP)
- WikiProject Stations (WP:STA)
- WikiProject Streetcars (WP:TRAM)
- WikiProject Rapid transit (WP:RTPJ)
- By region:
- Fictional rail transport topics:
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See also Wikipedia:WikiProject Trains/Todo |
There are a large number of articles that need to be written giving an overview of rail transport by country. Please take some time to check Rail transport by country to see which articles still need to be started.
