Railroad car
Overview
International Union of Railways
The UIC , or International Union of Railways, is an international rail transport industry body.- Brief history :The railways of Europe originated as separate concerns. There were many border changes after World War I and the Treaty of Versailles. Colonial railways were the responsibility of the...
), also known as a bogie in Indian English
Indian English
Indian English is an umbrella term used to describe dialects of the English language spoken primarily in the Republic of India.As a result of British colonial rule until Indian independence in 1947 English is an official language of India and is widely used in both spoken and literary contexts...
, is a vehicle
Vehicle
A vehicle is a device that is designed or used to transport people or cargo. Most often vehicles are manufactured, such as bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trains, ships, boats, and aircraft....
on a rail transport system
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
(railroad or railway) that is used for the carrying of cargo
Cargo
Cargo is goods or produce transported, generally for commercial gain, by ship, aircraft, train, van or truck. In modern times, containers are used in most intermodal long-haul cargo transport.-Marine:...
or passenger
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....
s. Cars can be coupled together into a train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
and hauled by one or more locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s. Passenger cars can be self-propelled in which case they can be single railcar
Railcar
A railcar, in British English and Australian English, is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach , with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railways, e.g., the Great Western...
s or multiple unit
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
s.
Most cars carry a "revenue" load, although "non-revenue" cars exist for the railroad's own use, such as for maintenance-of-way purposes.
Unanswered Questions
Discussions
Encyclopedia
International Union of Railways
The UIC , or International Union of Railways, is an international rail transport industry body.- Brief history :The railways of Europe originated as separate concerns. There were many border changes after World War I and the Treaty of Versailles. Colonial railways were the responsibility of the...
), also known as a bogie in Indian English
Indian English
Indian English is an umbrella term used to describe dialects of the English language spoken primarily in the Republic of India.As a result of British colonial rule until Indian independence in 1947 English is an official language of India and is widely used in both spoken and literary contexts...
, is a vehicle
Vehicle
A vehicle is a device that is designed or used to transport people or cargo. Most often vehicles are manufactured, such as bicycles, cars, motorcycles, trains, ships, boats, and aircraft....
on a rail transport system
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
(railroad or railway) that is used for the carrying of cargo
Cargo
Cargo is goods or produce transported, generally for commercial gain, by ship, aircraft, train, van or truck. In modern times, containers are used in most intermodal long-haul cargo transport.-Marine:...
or passenger
Passenger
A passenger is a term broadly used to describe any person who travels in a vehicle, but bears little or no responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination....
s. Cars can be coupled together into a train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
and hauled by one or more locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s. Passenger cars can be self-propelled in which case they can be single railcar
Railcar
A railcar, in British English and Australian English, is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach , with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railways, e.g., the Great Western...
s or multiple unit
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
s.
Most cars carry a "revenue" load, although "non-revenue" cars exist for the railroad's own use, such as for maintenance-of-way purposes. Such uses can generally be divided into the carriage of passengers and of freight. "Revenue" cars are basically of two types: passenger cars, or coaches, and freight cars or wagons/trucks.
Passenger cars
Passenger cars, or coaches, vary in their internal fittings:In standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
cars, seating is usually between three and five seats across the width of the car, with an aisle in between (resulting in 2+1, 2+2 or 3+2 seats) or at the side. Tables may be present between seats facing one another. Alternatively, seats facing the same direction may have access to a fold-down ledge on the back of the seat in front.
- If the aisle is located between seats, seat rows may face the same direction, or be grouped, with twin rows facing each other.
- In some vehicles intended for commuter services, seats are positioned with their backs to the side walls, either on one side or more commonly on both, facing each other across the aisle. This gives a wide accessway and standing room which accommodates standing passengers at peak times and improves loading and unloading speeds.
- If the aisle is at the side, the car is usually divided in small compartments. These usually contain 6 seats, although sometimes in second class they contain 8, and sometimes in first class they contain 4.
Passenger cars can take the electricity supply for heating and lighting equipment from two main sources: either directly from a head end power
Head end power
Head end power or electric train supply is a rail transport term for the electrical power distribution system on a passenger train. The power source, usually a locomotive at the front or “head” of a train or a generator car, generates all the electricity used for lighting, electrical and other...
generator on the locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
via bus cables, or by an axle powered generator which continuously charges batteries whenever the train is in motion.
Modern cars usually have either air-conditioning or windows that can be opened (sometimes, for safety, not so far that one can hang out), or sometimes both. Various types of onboard train toilet
Passenger train toilets
In rail transport, many passenger trains have toilet facilities on board. These are often located at the ends of carriages...
facilities may also be provided.
Other types of passenger car exist, especially for long journeys, such as the dining car
Dining car
A dining car or restaurant carriage , also diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant....
, parlor car, disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
car, and in rare cases theater and movie theater
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
car. In some cases another type of car is temporarily converted to one of these for an event.
Observation car
Observation car
An observation car/carriage/coach is a type of railroad passenger car, generally operated in a passenger train as the last carriage, with windows on the rear of the car for passengers' viewing pleasure...
s were built for the rear of many famous trains to allow the passengers to view the scenery. These proved popular, leading to the development of dome car
Dome car
A dome car is a type of railway passenger car that has a glass dome on the top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train. It also can include features of a coach, lounge car, dining car or observation...
s multiple units of which could be placed mid-train, and featured a glass-enclosed upper level extending above the normal roof to provide passengers with a better view.
Sleeping car
Sleeping car
The sleeping car or sleeper is a railway/railroad passenger car that can accommodate all its passengers in beds of one kind or another, primarily for the purpose of making nighttime travel more restful. The first such cars saw sporadic use on American railroads in the 1830s and could be configured...
s outfitted with (generally) small bedrooms allow passengers to sleep through their night-time trips, while couchette car
Couchette car
The couchette car is a railroad car conveying basic non-private sleeping accommodation.The car is divided into a number of compartments accessed from the side corridor of the car, which in daytime are configured with a bench seat along each long side of the compartment...
s provide more basic sleeping accommodation. Long-distance trains often require baggage car
Baggage car
A baggage car or luggage van is a type of railway vehicle often forming part of the composition of passenger trains and used to carry passengers' checked baggage, as well as parcels . Being typically coupled at the front of the train behind the locomotive, this type of car is sometimes described...
s for the passengers' luggage. In European practice it used to be common for day coaches to be formed of compartments seating 6 or 8 passengers, with access from a side corridor. In the UK, Corridor coaches fell into disfavor in the 1960s and 1970s partially because open coaches are considered more secure by women traveling alone.
Another distinction is between single- and double deck train cars. An example of a double decker
Bilevel car
The bilevel car or double-decker coach is a type of rail car that has two levels of passenger accommodation, as opposed to one, increasing passenger capacity ....
is the Amtrak superliner
Superliner (railcar)
The Superliner is a double decker passenger car used by Amtrak on long haul trains that do not use the Northeast Corridor. The initial cars were built by Pullman-Standard in the late 1970s and a second order was built in the mid 1990s by Bombardier Transportation...
.
A "trainset" (or "set") is a semi-permanently arranged formation of cars, rather than one created 'ad hoc' out of whatever cars are available. These are only broken up and reshuffled 'on shed' (in the maintenance depot). Trains are then built of one or more of these 'sets' coupled together as needed for the capacity of that train.
Often, but not always, passenger cars in a train are linked together with enclosed, flexible gangway connections that can be walked through by passengers and crew members. Some designs incorporate semi-permanent connections between cars and may have a full-width connection, making in essence one longer, flexible 'car'. In North America, passenger equipment also employ tightlock coupling
Tightlock coupling
Tightlock coupling or titelok coupler is an Association of American Railroads tooth and toothbrush automatic coupler of which there are two types:...
s to keep a train reasonably intact in the event of a derailment or other accident.
Many multiple unit
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
trains consist of cars which are semi-permanently coupled into sets; these sets may be joined together to form larger trains, but generally passengers can only move around between cars within a set. This "closed" nature allows the separate sets to be easily split to go separate ways. Some multiple-unit trainsets are designed so that corridor connections can be easily opened between coupled sets; this generally requires driving cabs either set off to the side or (as in the Dutch Koploper
Trains in the Netherlands
The following are current and former trains in the Netherlands.-Out of service:* Arend: was the first train in the Netherlands and pulled the first train between Amsterdam and Haarlem in 1839....
) above the passenger compartment. These cabs or driving trailers are also useful for quickly reversing the train.
Freight cars
Boxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
(UK: "van"), a closed box with side doors, was among the first.
- Aircraft Parts Car
- AutorackAutorackAn autorack, also known as an auto carrier, is a specialized piece of railroad rolling stock used to transport automobiles and light trucks, generally from factories to automotive distributors...
- (also called auto carriers) are specialized multi-level cars designed for transportation of unladen automobiles. - BoxcarBoxcarA boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
(US), covered wagonCovered goods wagonA covered goods wagon or van is a railway goods wagon which is designed for the transportation of moisture-susceptible goods and therefore fully enclosed by sides and a fixed roof. They are often referred to simply as covered wagons, and this is the term used by the International Union of Railways...
(UICInternational Union of RailwaysThe UIC , or International Union of Railways, is an international rail transport industry body.- Brief history :The railways of Europe originated as separate concerns. There were many border changes after World War I and the Treaty of Versailles. Colonial railways were the responsibility of the...
) or van (UIC) - box shape with roof and side or end doors. - CargoSprinterCargoSprinterThe CargoSprinter is a multiple unit freight car;it could also be thought of as a container truck that runs on rails.Built by the German company Windhoff, it is in effect a self-propelled flatcar for containers...
- a self propelled container flatcar. - Centerbeam cars
- Coil car - a specialized type of rolling stock designed for the transport of coils of sheet metal, particularly steel. They are considered a subtype of the gondola car, though they bear little resemblance to a typical gondola.
- ConflatConflatConflat is a United Kingdom railway term for a container wagon. For the vacuum flange, see Conflat .-History:'Conflat' is the telegraphic code within the Great Western Railway's coding of railway wagons for a container wagon...
(UK) - A flat truck for carrying containersIntermodal containerAn intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...
. - Covered wagonCovered goods wagonA covered goods wagon or van is a railway goods wagon which is designed for the transportation of moisture-susceptible goods and therefore fully enclosed by sides and a fixed roof. They are often referred to simply as covered wagons, and this is the term used by the International Union of Railways...
(UIC), van (UIC) or boxcarBoxcarA boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
(US) - fully enclosed wagon for moisture-susceptible goods. - Covered hopperCovered hopperA Covered Hopper is a railroad freight car. They are designed for carrying dry bulk loads, varying from grain to products such as sand and clay. The cover protects the loads from the weather - dried cement would be very hard to unload if mixed with water in transit, while grain would be liable to...
- similar to open top hoppers but with a cover for weather and temperature-sensitive loads. - Double-Stack Car (or well car) - specialized cars designed for carrying shipping containersIntermodal containerAn intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...
. These have a "well" with a very low bottom floor to allow double stacking. - FlatcarFlatcarA flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
(or flat) - for larger loads that don't load easily into a boxcar. Specialized types such as the depressed-center flatcar (aka "well car") exist for oversize items or the Schnabel carSchnabel carA Schnabel car is a specialized type of railroad freight car. It is designed to carry heavy and oversized loads in such a way that the load itself makes up part of the car...
for even larger and heavier loads. With the advent of containerized freight, special types of flatcars were built to carry standard shipping containersIntermodal containerAn intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...
and semi-trailerSemi-trailerA semi-trailer is a trailer without a front axle. A large proportion of its weight is supported by a road tractor, a detachable front axle assembly known as a dolly, or the tail of another trailer...
s. - Gondola (US) - railroad car with an open top but enclosed sides and ends, for bulk commodities and other goods that might slide off.
- Hicube boxcars
- HoppersHopper carA hopper car is a type of railroad freight car used to transport loose bulk commodities such as coal, ore, grain, track ballast, and the like. The name originated from the coke manufacturing industry which is part of the steel industry ....
- similar to gondolas but with bottom dump doors for easy unloading of things like coal, ore, grain, cement, ballastTrack ballastTrack ballast forms the trackbed upon which railway sleepers or railroad ties are laid. It is packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to facilitate drainage of water, to distribute the load from the railroad ties, and also to keep down vegetation that might interfere with the track...
and the like. Short hoppers for carrying iron ore are called ore jennys in the US. - Lorry (US) - An open wagon (UICInternational Union of RailwaysThe UIC , or International Union of Railways, is an international rail transport industry body.- Brief history :The railways of Europe originated as separate concerns. There were many border changes after World War I and the Treaty of Versailles. Colonial railways were the responsibility of the...
) or gondola (US) with a tipping trough, often found in minesMiningMining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
. See also Tippler. - LowmacLowmacLowmac is a United Kingdom railway term for a design of low-floored wagon. A Lowmac's purpose is for carrying vehicles or equipment that would normally be over the recommended height of a normal flatbed wagon, and hence exceed the loading gauge....
(UK) - A low-floor wagon for carrying machinery. - Modalohr Road Trailer Carriers.
- Open wagonOpen wagonOpen wagons form a large group of railway goods wagons designed primarily for the transportation of bulk goods that are not moisture-retentive and can usually be tipped, dumped or shovelled. The International Union of Railways distinguishes between ordinary wagons and special wagons...
(UICInternational Union of RailwaysThe UIC , or International Union of Railways, is an international rail transport industry body.- Brief history :The railways of Europe originated as separate concerns. There were many border changes after World War I and the Treaty of Versailles. Colonial railways were the responsibility of the...
) - railway wagon with an open top but enclosed sides and ends, for bulk commodities and other goods that might slide off. - Refrigerator carRefrigerator carA refrigerator car is a refrigerated boxcar , a piece of railroad rolling stock designed to carry perishable freight at specific temperatures. Refrigerator cars differ from simple insulated boxcars and ventilated boxcars , neither of which are fitted with cooling apparatus...
(or reefer) - a refrigerated subtype of boxcar. - Roll-blockRoll-blockThe Rollbock system allows a coupled train of standard gauge wagons to be automatically loaded or rolled onto pre-coupled narrow gauge transporter trucks or bogies so that the train can then continue through a change of gauge...
- a train designed to carry another railway train. - Rolling highwayRolling HighwayA rolling highway is a combined transport system to transport trucks by rail....
- a train designed to carry truckTruckA truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, with the smallest being mechanically similar to an automobile...
s and/or semi-trailerSemi-trailerA semi-trailer is a trailer without a front axle. A large proportion of its weight is supported by a road tractor, a detachable front axle assembly known as a dolly, or the tail of another trailer...
s - Side Dump Cars - used to transport roadbed materials such as, ballastTrack ballastTrack ballast forms the trackbed upon which railway sleepers or railroad ties are laid. It is packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to facilitate drainage of water, to distribute the load from the railroad ties, and also to keep down vegetation that might interfere with the track...
, riprapRiprapRiprap — also known as rip rap, rubble, shot rock or rock armour or "Rip-rap" — is rock or other material used to armor shorelines, streambeds, bridge abutments, pilings and other shoreline structures against scour, water or ice erosion.It is made from a variety of rock types, commonly granite or...
, and large stoneRock (geology)In geology, rock or stone is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
, and are able to unload anywhere along the track. - Schnabel carSchnabel carA Schnabel car is a specialized type of railroad freight car. It is designed to carry heavy and oversized loads in such a way that the load itself makes up part of the car...
- specialized freight car for heavy or oversized loads. - Slate wagonSlate waggonSlate waggons are specialized types of railway waggons designed for the conveyance of slate. The characteristics of this stone led to the development of small open cars that carried the slate in its various forms. These were first developed on the narrow gauge railways serving the slate industry...
- specialized freight cars used to transport slate. - Spine car, a center sill and side sill only car with lateral arms to support intermodal containerIntermodal containerAn intermodal container is a standardized reusable steel box used for the safe, efficient and secure storage and movement of materials and products within a global containerized intermodal freight transport system...
s. No deck. - Stock CarStock car (rail)In railroad terminology, a stock car or cattle wagon is a type of rolling stock used for carrying livestock to market...
- for the transport of livestock. - Tank carTank carA tank car is a type of railroad rolling stock designed to transport liquid and gaseous commodities.-Timeline:...
(US), tank wagon (UIC) (or tanker) - for the transportation of liquids or gases. - Tippler (UK) - An open wagonOpen wagonOpen wagons form a large group of railway goods wagons designed primarily for the transportation of bulk goods that are not moisture-retentive and can usually be tipped, dumped or shovelled. The International Union of Railways distinguishes between ordinary wagons and special wagons...
with no doors or roof which are unloaded by being inverted on a Wagon Tippler (UK) or Rotary car dumperRotary car dumperA rotary car dumper or wagon tippler is a mechanism used for unloading certain railroad cars such as hopper cars, gondolas or lorries . It holds the rail car to a section of track and rotates the track and car together to dump out the contents. Used with gondola cars, it is making open hopper cars...
(US). They are, used for mineralMineralA mineral is a naturally occurring solid chemical substance formed through biogeochemical processes, having characteristic chemical composition, highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties. By comparison, a rock is an aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids and does not...
s, such as coalCoalCoal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
, limestoneLimestoneLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
and iron ore as well as other bulk cargoBulk cargoBulk cargo is commodity cargo that is transported unpackaged in large quantities. This cargo is usually dropped or poured, with a spout or shovel bucket, as a liquid or as a mass of relatively small solids , into a bulk carrier ship's hold, railroad car, or tanker truck/trailer/semi-trailer body...
. See also Lorry. - Transporter wagonTransporter wagonA transporter wagon, in railway terminology, is a wagon or railroad car designed to carry other railway equipment. Normally, it is used to transport equipment of a different rail gauge...
- a wagon designed to carry other railway equipment. - "Whale Belly" car, a tank car with a "belly".
The vast majority of freight cars fit into the above categories.
Non-revenue cars
- CabooseCabooseA caboose is a manned North American rail transport vehicle coupled at the end of a freight train. Although cabooses were once used on nearly every freight train, their use has declined and they are seldom seen on trains, except on locals and smaller railroads.-Function:The caboose provided the...
s (or guard's vans or brakevans) which attach to the rear of freight trains in order to watch the train and assist in shoving moves. - Clearance carClearance carA clearance car is a type of railroad car in maintenance of way service. Its purpose is to check the clearances around the tracks and ensure that trains conforming to the railroad's standard loading gauge or dynamic envelope will not encounter any obstruction...
, special car to check for obstructions. - HandcarHandcarA handcar is a railroad car powered by its passengers, or by people pushing the car from behind. It is mostly used as a maintenance of way or mining car, but it was also used for passenger service in some cases...
s, which are powered by their passengers. - Maintenance of way (MOW) cars, for the maintenance of track and equipment.
- Tower cars used to maintain overhead linesOverhead linesOverhead lines or overhead wires are used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains at a distance from the energy supply point...
- Track tester
- Tower cars used to maintain overhead lines
- Rail car moverRail car moverA rail car mover is a road-rail vehicle fitted with couplers for moving small numbers of railroad cars around in a rail siding or small yard...
— some of which resemble HiRail trucks. - Railroad cranesCrane (railroad)A railroad crane, is a type of crane used on a railroad for one of three primary uses: freight handling in goods yards, permanent way maintenance, and accident recovery work...
- Road-rail vehicleRoad-rail vehicleA road–rail vehicle is a self-propelled vehicle that can be legally used on both roads and rails. Combining the words "highway" and "rail", one is often referred to as a hi-rail truck or just hi-rail, sometimes spelled high-rail, HiRail or Hy-rail. They are normally converted rubber-tired road...
- Scale test carScale test carA scale test car is a type of railroad car in maintenance of way service. Its purpose is to calibrate the weighing scales used to weigh loaded railroad cars. Cars are weighed to ensure they are within the axle load limits of the railroad, and to determine the amount of cargo loaded...
- Office car which contains a mobile office for a train company.
- Crew carCrew carA crew car is a passenger carriage specially fitted out for the use of train drivers. Interior fittings include a sleeping compartment for each crew member, a lounge area, kitchen, bathroom, and laundry...
aka Outfit Car or a Camp Car, a bunk car or modular homeModular homeModular buildings and modular homes are sectional prefabricated buildings or houses that consist of multiple modules or sections which are built in a remote facility and then delivered to their intended site of use...
mounted on a flatcarFlatcarA flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
to house railroad employees.
Military cars
Armoured train
An armoured train is a train protected with armour. They are usually equipped with railroad cars armed with artillery and machine guns. They were mostly used during the late 19th and early 20th century, when they offered an innovative way to quickly move large amounts of firepower...
s use several types of specialized cars:
- artillery — fielding mixture of gunGunA gun is a muzzle or breech-loaded projectile-firing weapon. There are various definitions depending on the nation and branch of service. A "gun" may be distinguished from other firearms in being a crew-served weapon such as a howitzer or mortar, as opposed to a small arm like a rifle or pistol,...
s and machine guns - infantry — fielding machine guns, designed to carry infantryInfantryInfantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
units - machine gun — dedicated to machine gunMachine gunA machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
s - anti-air — equipped with anti-air guns
- command — similar to infantry wagons, but designed to be a train command center
- anti-tank — equipped with anti-tank guns, usually in a tankTankA tank is a tracked, armoured fighting vehicle designed for front-line combat which combines operational mobility, tactical offensive, and defensive capabilities...
gun turretGun turretA gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform... - platform — unarmoured, with purposes ranging from transport of ammunitionAmmunitionAmmunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
or vehicles, through track repair or derailing protection to railroad ploughRailroad ploughA railroad plough is a rail vehicle which supports an immensely strong, hook-shaped 'plough'...
s for railroad destruction. - troop sleeperTroop sleeperIn United States railroad terminology, a troop sleeper was a railroad passenger car which had been constructed to serve as something of a mobile barracks for transporting troops over distances sufficient to require overnight accommodations...
s - DODX is the reporting mark for the United States Department of DefenseUnited States Department of DefenseThe United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
Military Traffic Management Command. (Index of dodx.)
Mobile missile systems
During the Cold WarCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
fielded a number of trains that served as mobile missile silos. These trains carried the missile and everything necessary to launch, and were kept moving around the railway network to make them difficult to find and destroy in a first-strike attack. A similar rail-borne system was proposed in the United States of America for the LGM-30 Minuteman in the 1960s, and the LGM-118 Peacekeeper in the 1980s, but neither were deployed. The Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command
The Strategic Air Command was both a Major Command of the United States Air Force and a "specified command" of the United States Department of Defense. SAC was the operational establishment in charge of America's land-based strategic bomber aircraft and land-based intercontinental ballistic...
's 1st Combat Evaluation RBS "Express" did deploy from Barksdale Air Force Base
Barksdale Air Force Base
Barksdale Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately east-southeast of Bossier City, Louisiana.The host unit at Barksdale is the 2d Bomb Wing , the oldest Bomb Wing in the Air Force. It is assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command's Eighth Air Force...
with radar bomb scoring units mounted on military railroad cars with supporting equipment, to score simulated
Military simulation
Military simulations, also known informally as war games, are simulations in which theories of warfare can be tested and refined without the need for actual hostilities. Many professional contemporary analysts object to the term wargames as this is generally taken to be referring to the civilian...
thermonuclear bombing of cities
Aerial bombing of cities
A species of strategic bombing, the aerial bombing of cities began in 1915 during World War I, grew to a vast scale in World War II, and continues to the present day. The development of aerial bombardment marked an increased capacity of armed forces to deliver explosive weapons in populated areas...
in the continental United States.
See also
- Air brakeAir brake (rail)An air brake is a conveyance braking system actuated by compressed air. Modern trains rely upon a fail-safe air brake system that is based upon a design patented by George Westinghouse on March 5, 1872. The Westinghouse Air Brake Company was subsequently organized to manufacture and sell...
- List of railway vehicles
- List of rolling stock manufacturers
- Rail car tracking deviceRailRiderThe RailRider is a Global Positioning System tracking and monitoring device used on railroad freight cars and locomotives. In earlier days of railroading a rail rider was known as a person to ride on a railcar to make sure it arrived unscathed....
- Railway brakes
- Tender
- TramTramA tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
- Vacuum brakeVacuum brakeThe vacuum brake is a braking system employed on trains and introduced in the mid-1860s. A variant, the automatic vacuum brake system, became almost universal in British train equipment and in those countries influenced by British practice. Vacuum brakes also enjoyed a brief period of adoption in...
External links
- List of railroad car manufacturers by country
- History of the Ralston Steel Car Company, Columbus, Ohio
- Paquette Railway Solutions, dealing with rolling stock and power
- US Air Force Guard Car G-50 Strategic Air Command guard car, rebuilt from Army 1943 troop kitchen car #8750. Photographed in Portola, California at the Western Pacific Railroad MuseumWestern Pacific Railroad MuseumThe Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola, California, formerly known as the Portola Railroad Museum before , is a heritage railroad that preserves and operates historic American railroad equipment. The museum's mission is to preserve the history of the Western Pacific Railroad and is...
. - Peacekeeper Rail Garrison Car.
- Guide to Railcars