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A rubber-tyred metro or rubber-tired metro is a form of rapid transit system that uses a mix of road and rail technology. The vehicles have wheels with rubber tires that run on a roll way inside guide bars for traction. Traditional, flanged steel wheels running on rail tracks provide guidance through switches and act as backup if tyres fail ...
Running wheels (also known as road wheels or tractor wheels): positioned on the top of the rail, bearing the weight of the train. Side friction wheels: positioned on a horizontal plane, either inside or outside of the rails. These hug the sides of the rail, keeping the train centered. Up-stop wheels (also known as underfriction wheels or up ...
A ball pin on the bogie fitted into a socket under the front axle and the bogie could easily be removed or replaced by running the tractor up a pair of ramps placed on both sides of the track. The tractor's weight distribution was 3,000 pounds (1,361 kilograms) on the rail and 5,655 pounds (2,565 kilograms) on the rubber-tyred driving wheels.
An agricultural tractor with rubber tracks, mitigating soil compaction A Russian tracked vehicle designed to operate on snow and swamps A British Army Challenger 1 tank. Continuous track or tracked treads are a system of vehicle propulsion used in tracked vehicles, running on a continuous band of treads or track plates driven by two or more ...
Some rubber-tyred metros feature special wheelsets with rubber tyres outside of deep-flanged steel wheels, which guide the bogie through standard railroad switches and keep the train from derailing if a tyre deflates. The system was originally conceived by Michelin for the Paris Métro; the first line opened in 1956.
Protrusions molded into rubber tractor tire treads are known as lugs, as are cleats for round wheels, [citation needed] which perform a similar function. Unlike metal grousers, these rubber tire treads or crawler-track shoes/pads may be more suitable for driving on roads. [7] Grousers on a captured World War I British tank.
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In general terms these vehicles were similar to the diesel-electric locomotives that were being widely introduced by the railways at the same time, but they replaced the steel wheels with rubber ones. The earliest vehicles using the system were a number of 6x6 graders, wheel tractor-scrapers and other earthmovers.