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High rails on a model railway layout at the Convention of American Railroadfans in Switzerland, 2006. High rail (also called "hi-rail" and "hirail") is a phrase used in model railroading in North America, mostly in O scale and S scale, to describe a "compromise" form of modelling that strives for realism while accepting the compromises in scale associated with toy train equipment.
A track geometry car (also known as a track recording car) is an automated track inspection vehicle on a rail transport system used to test several parameters of the track geometry without obstructing normal railroad operations. Some of the parameters generally measured include position, curvature, alignment of the track, smoothness, and the ...
A remaining section of the Aérotrain track near Saran 2006. The Aérotrain was an experimental Tracked Air Cushion Vehicle (TACV), or hovertrain, developed in France from 1965 to 1977 under the engineering leadership of Jean Bertin (1917–1975) – and intended to bring the French rail network to the cutting edge of land-based public transportation.
Track warrants are issued granting main track use between two named points (i.e. milepost sign, station, or any fixed physical point, such as a switch).The dispatcher may also issue time constraints (known as "Box 6" on a standard form), although the track warrants remain in effect until cleared by a member of the receiving crew.
The greatest effort is required from a locomotive when starting. At this time, if the engineer applies too much power to the wheels (i.e., for a steam locomotive, the engineer opens the regulator too far) the turning force applied to the wheel will greatly exceed the opposing friction force affected by the surface of the rail, and the wheel will turn without being able to move the train forward.
Side friction wheels keep the train centered in the track, avoiding derailment. The final set of wheels in the assembly are known as running wheels, road wheels, or tractor wheels. Running wheels are typically the largest set of wheels in the assembly, and roll on the top of the rails. These wheels bear the weight of the train.
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In his book, Shilovsky describes a form of on-track braking, which is feasible with a monorail, but would upset the directional stability of a conventional rail vehicle. This has the potential of much shorter stopping distances compared with conventional wheel on steel, with a corresponding reduction in safe separation between trains.