Rail terminology Totally Explained

Everything about Rail Terminology totally explained

Rail terminology
Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term railroad and the British term railway (also used by other English-speaking countries outside the US) is the most obvious trans-Atlantic difference in rail terminology (see usage of the terms railroad and railway for more information). There are also others, due to the parallel development of rail transport systems on both sides of the Atlantic. Various terms are presented here alphabetically; where a term has multiple names, this is indicated. The note "US" indicates a term peculiar to North America, or "CA" may represent Canada while "UK" refers to terms originating in the British Isles and normally also used in former British colonies outside North America (such as Australia "AU", New Zealand "NZ", etc.). Exceptions are noted; terms whose currency is limited to one particular country, region, or railway are also included.
For terminology specific to the types of lines used for passenger trains, see passenger rail terminology.

0-9

ť Note: for 4-4-0, 2-6-4T, 0-4-4-0, etc. See Whyte notation or UIC classification

Definitions	Points of Interest
10 wheeler or ten wheeler (US): A steam locomotive with a 4-6-0 wheel arrangement.

A

Definitions	Points of Interest
Air brake: Railroad brakes which operate using compressed air. Alco: American Locomotive Company - the second largest builder of steam locomotives in the U.S. Alerter: Similar to the Dead man's switch other than it doesn't require the operator's constant interaction. Instead an alarm is sounded at a preset interval in which the operator must respond by pressing a button to reset the alarm and the timer. If the operator doesn't respond within a preset time the brakes are applied. May also be called a 'Watchdog'. American: A steam locomotive with a 4-4-0 wheel arrangement. Angel Seat or Angel's Perch: (US) A term often used when referring to the second level seats on a Cupola style caboose. Annett's key (UK), Annett key (Aus.): A large key which locks levers or other items of signalling apparatus, serving as a portable form of interlocking. With the key removed from the lock, the lever or apparatus is locked in its position. When the key is turned in the lock, it can't be removed. Articulated locomotive: A steam locomotive with one or more engine units that can move relative to the main frame. Bacon slicer (UK): Slang term for a cutoff controlled by a wheel operating through a worm and nut, rather than the more usual quadrant lever. The device was slow to operate, but very precise, and therefore only fitted to long-distance locomotives where frequent changes of cut-off were not required. Bad order A tag or note applied to a defective piece of equipment. Generally, equipment tagged as bad order isn't to be used until repairs are performed and the equipment is inspected and approved for use. Baldwin: American locomotive manufacturer. Bonds: Short wires used to bridge gaps in electrical circuits, usually at track circuit joints or between rails. Booking Clerk: A person at a station whose job is specifically selling tickets. Boom barrier: A barrier at a level (rail) crossings. Booster: (Steam locomotive) - An extra set of cylinders that can be engaged to drive a trailing truck or tender truck to give additional tractive effort at starting and low speeds. Cabless: A locomotive without a cab. Commonly referred to as a B unit or a Slug. Although not all Slugs are cabless. Caboose: A railroad car attached usually to the end of a train, in which railroad workers could ride and monitor track and rolling stock conditions. Partly analogous to brake van (UK). Largely obsolete, having been replaced by the electronic End of Train (EOT) device, or Flashing Rear End Device called "FRED". Chimney (UK): Smokestack or stack (US), or funnel. Co-Co (EU): A heavier duty locomotive with 6 wheels per bogie configuration as opposed to a 4-wheel "Bo-Bo" configuration. The correct classification is Co'Co', but Co-Co is used more often. COFC: Abbreviation for "Container On Flat Car". Compromise joint: A special joint bar used to join rail ends of two different cross-sections while holding the top running surface and inside gauge surface even. Conductor (US), guard (UK): The person "in charge" of a train and its crew. On passenger trains, a conductor is also responsible for tasks such as assisting passengers and collecting tickets. In Australia, both terms are used, "conductor" for the person checking tickets, etc. on a tram or train, and "guard" for the person in charge of the train. Consist (US), formation (UK): A noun to describe the group of rail vehicles making up a train, or more commonly a group of locomotives connected together for Multiple-Unit (MU) operation. Coupler (US), coupling(UK): Railroad cars in a train are connected by couplers located at the ends of the cars. Cow and calf: A diesel locomotive with a crew cab permanently coupled to and acting as a controller for a similar slave diesel locomotive without a crew cab, primarily used for switching/shunting duties for large groups of rolling stock. Also known as master and slave, as in the British Rail Class 13 shunters at Tinsley Marshalling Yard. Cowl unit (US): A locomotive whose sides and roof are non-structural, and cover the full width of the locomotive. Structural strength comes from the underframe. Crank pin: A pin protruding from a wheel into a main or coupling rod. Crew driver (US): Person(s) operating ground transportation vehicles for transporting railroad crews to and from various locations. Crosshead: The pivot between the piston rod and the main rod on a steam locomotive. Cross-tie (U.S): sleeper (UK): See Railroad tie. Cut off: A variable device on steam locomotives which closes the steam valve to the steam cylinder before the end of the piston stroke, thus conserving steam while allowing the steam in the cylinder to expand under its own energy. Also: Reverser. Cutting: A channel dug through a hillside to enable railtrack to maintain a shallow gradient. See also embankment Cylinder: The central working part of a reciprocating engine, the space in which a piston travels.

D

Definitions	Points of Interest
Dead man's handle or Dead man's switch: A safety mechanism on a train controller which automatically applies the brake if a lever is released. It is intended to stop a train if the driver is incapacitated. In some forms, this device may be pedal-actuated. Defect detector: A track side device used to detect various defects such as Hotboxes (Overheated axle bearings), dragging equipment, leaning cars, overloaded cars, overheight cars, seized wheels, etc. Detonators: Small charges placed on the running rail which explode when run over; used to warn drivers in following trains of an incident ahead. Also called torpedoes (US). Diamond: Trackage which allows a rail line to cross another at grade. The term is reminiscent of a parade of circus elephants where the elephant behind the front elephant would hold the leading elephant's tail in its trunk. Elevated railway: One typically built on supports over city streets, commonly called "the el" or simply the "The L". Embankment: A raised pathway on which rail tracks are placed to maintain a shallow gradient when passing over depressions in the terrain. See also cutting. Empty Coaching Stock* train, or ECS: A train used to bring carriages into (or out of) service. They usually run between sidings and main stations, with the carriages then forming a service train to another destination. They are often worked under freight train rules - eg without needing a guard in the UK. EMD: Electro-Motive Diesels, Inc, the world's second largest builder of railroad locomotives. EMD was previously Electro-Motive Division of GM before being sold off. Engineer (US), driver, engine driver, train driver (UK): The operator of a locomotive. EOT (US): End of train device. A form of an electronic caboose also called FRED. Feedwater heater: A device to preheat the water for a steam locomotive; improves efficiency. Fettle, fettling: Making repairs to rail track, especially concerned with maintaining the drainage of the ballast, and the proper cant of the rail track and rails. Fiddle Yard: A concealed group of sidings used in model railways to provide more realistic operation in limited space. Firebox: In steam railroading, a firebox was a chamber in which a fire would produce sufficient heat to create steam once the hot gases from the firebox were carried into the adjacent boiler via tubes or flues. Fireman (also Stoker, Boilerman): A worker whose primary job is to shovel coal into the firebox and ensure that the boiler maintains sufficient steam pressure; a driver's assistant. Fishplate (UK), Joint bar (US): A metal plate that joins the ends of rails in jointed track. Flat: A wheel defect where the tread of a wheel has a flat spot and is no longer round; flats can be heard as regular clicking noises when the wheel passes by. Flat wagon (UK). Flying junction: A railway junction that has a track configuration in which merging or crossing railroad lines provide track connections with each other without requiring trains to cross over in front of opposing traffic. Four-foot: The part of the line between a pair of running rails. An abbreviation for four foot, eight-and-a-half-inches. Also see six-foot and ten-foot. Four-quadrant gate: A type of Boom barrier, see above. FRA: (US) The Federal Railroad Administration. This agency oversees rail operation regulations and safety requirements for U.S. freight, passenger and commuter rail operations. Free-mo: A type of modular layout in model railroading. Freight (US) goods (UK): the product(s) in which are carried. Frog: (US) A casting with "X" shaped grooves used in switches and crossovers. Garratt: A type of articulated locomotive. Gauge: The width between the inner faces of the rails. Geep: A slang term for any of the GP ("general-purpose") series of Electro-Motive four-axle diesel locomotives; originally applied only to EMD GP7, GP9, and GP18 models. Headshunt (UK), Shunting neck (US): A length of track feeding a number of sidings that permits the sidings to be shunted without blocking the main line, or where two lines merge into one before ending with a buffer, to allow a run-round procedure to take place. Heavy haul: Heavy freight operations. Heavy rail (US): A city-based transit rail system that runs on its own dedicated track and often underground. Subways are considered heavy rail. Heavyweight (US): During the period between about 1910 and the mid nineteen thirties, most passenger cars in the US were built with three axle trucks, concrete floors, and riveted, double walled sides and often weighed 90 - 100 tons or more. Heavyweight construction was used to improve ride quality. High rail: The upper rail in a curve or superelevation which typically experiences the higher lateral loads and greater wear. Hogger (slang, US): A locomotive engineer. Hoodlebug (slang, US): A small commuter passenger train or trolley. Hood unit (US): A locomotive whose sides and roof are nonstructural and don't extend the full width of the locomotive. Structural strength comes from the underframe. Hotbox detector: A device attached to the track which monitors passing trains for hot axles, and then reports the results via a radio transmission (US) or a circuit to the signal box (UK). (see defect detector). Interlocking (US): Any location that includes a switch or crossing of two tracks, derived from the early practice of installation of a system of mechanical equipment called an interlocking plant to prevent collisions. See also signal box. Interlocking is also the term for the actual mechanical or electrical apparatus that prevents switch/points and signals from being operated in ways that would allow for conflicting train movements. Joint bar, fishplate (UK): Joins the ends of rails in jointed track. Also referred to in North America as a rail joiner or angle bar. Jointed track: Track in which the rails are laid in lengths of around 20 m and bolted to each other end-to-end by means of fishplates (UK) or joint bars (US). Light rail: A city-based rail system that typically shares its operational space with other vehicles (for example automobiles) and often runs on, across or down the center of city streets. Light rail vehicles (LRV) generally have a top speed of around 60 mph (100 km/h) though mostly operating at much lower speeds, more akin to road vehicles. Light rail vehicles usually run on trackage that weighs less per foot (due to a smaller track profile) than the tracks used for main-line freight trains; thus they're "light rail" due to the smaller rails usually used. Main rod (US): The drive rod connecting the crosshead to a driving-wheel or axle in a steam locomotive. Mechanical semaphore signal: A signal in which the aspect is conveyed by moving an arm. Merry-go-round (MGR) train (UK): coal train running between a coal mine and a power station, loading and unloading without stopping or shunting. MLW: Montreal Locomotive Works, bought by Bombardier and closed. Motor train (UK): See Auto train (UK) above. Multiple aspect signalling: A system of colour-light signalling in which signals may show 3 or 4 aspects. Multiple unit (UK) MU (US): a self-propelled rail vehicle that can be joined with compatible others and controlled from a single driving station. The sub-classes of this type of vehicle; Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU), Diesel-Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU) and Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) are more common terms. These may also be termed railcars. Multiple-unit train control (US), Multiple working (UK): generally seen as the abbreviation MU, this normally refers to the ability of diesel and electric locomotives or multiple units to be joined together and controlled from one driving station. Such a set of joined locomotives is called (US) a consist or (colloquially) "lash-up" and is said to be "MUed together". There are many common gauges narrower than standard, amongst them 3 ft 6 in (1067 mm) widely in Africa and Asia; 3 ft (914 mm), which was the most common narrow gauge in the U.S.; and 2 ft (600 mm), which saw widespread use in the UK. Meter gauge (1000 mm) is also been used. Narrow-gauge lines are often found in mountainous terrain where the cost savings of building a smaller railroad can be considerable.

O

Definitions	Points of Interest
Open wagon (UK), Gondola (US). A form of freight hauling car for bulk goods. ORER Official Railway Equipment Register. Overlap (UK): A distance (normally 180 metres or set according to the permitted speed of the line) beyond a stop signal which must be clear before the preceding stop signal can display a proceed aspect; allows a margin in case a train overshoots a signal before stopping.

P

Definitions	Points of Interest
P-train: An NMBS/SNCB commuter train. Pacific: A steam locomotive with a 4-6-2 wheel arrangement. Pannier tank: A tank locomotive with the water tanks mounted on the boiler like panniers. Pantograph: An arm to pick up current from overhead lines. Per diem: A fee paid by a rail company to the owner of a car (US) (wagon (UK)) for the time it spends on the company's property; also an authorized living expense payment for some workers forced away from their home terminal. Pronounced by some U.S. railroaders per die-um, not per dee-um. Point machine (UK): A motor or device which operates points. Points (UK): switch (US). Also "turnout". Pony truck: A two-wheel truck (US) or bogie (UK) at the front of a locomotive. Porter: A Porter had various roles: A Baggage Porter assisted with luggage; an Operating Porter assisted with Safeworking duties; a Station Porter assisted with general station duties and a Lad Porter was a junior Station Porter. Position light signal: A signal in which the position of the lights determine the meaning of the aspect shown. Pound (rail): Term describing the weight (and thus the cross section) of a length of rail. A heavier rail can carry heavier loads with less distortion and less damage to the rails themselves and the roadbed. Power: A slang term referring to a locomotive or group of connected (MU'd) locomotives serving as the motive power for a train (as in "the hostler brought the power to the service pit.") Reporting mark: A two- to four-letter code, assigned by the Association of American Railroads, that's applied to equipment operating on North American railroads to identify the owner. Reverser or Reverser handle: See Cut off, above. The handle that controls the directional control on a locomotive. Ribbon Rail: Continuously welded rail. Safety Appliance Act (US): A law mandating air brakes, grab bars, and automatic couplers Safeworking: The system of rules and equipment designed to ensure the safe operation of trains. Schnabel car: A specialized type of freight car for extra heavy and over sized loads; the car is loaded in such a way that the load forms part of the car superstructure. Searchlight: A signal with a single light source usually capable of displaying three different colors. An internal mechanism governs the color displayed. SPAD (UK): Signal Passed At Danger, where a train disobeys a stop signal. Sometimes referred to as a "blown red" in U.S. railroad slang. Speeder (US): A small vehicle used to let track inspectors and work crews move quickly to and from work sites. (Obsolete) Speeders have mostly been replaced by trucks and SUVs with retractable flanged wheels. Spike: A bolt, pin or nail used to hold rails, or plates connected to the rails (known as tie plates), to sleepers (ties). Spiral easement See Track transition curve. Also known as tangent lead-in. Staff and ticket: A method of safeworking involving a token. Ten-foot: An area, usually at least ten feet wide, between a pair of widely-spaced tracks, wide enough to form a place of safety in which railway workers can stand while a train goes past. See also four-foot and six-foot. Ten-wheeler (US): A steam locomotive with a 4-6-0 wheel arrangement. Terminal station (esp. U.S.), terminus (esp. UK): A station sited where a railway line or service ends or terminates. The T (US): A nickname for Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) the Subway service through Boston, Massachusetts. Theatre indicator (UK) An illuminated number usually attached to signal indicating arrival platform for train approaching a station. Third Rail: An electrified rail that runs along the tracks, giving power to trains. Used mostly in subways and rapid transit systems. Up (UK, etc.): A direction (usually towards London, other capital city, or the headquarters of the railway concerned) or side (on left-running railways, the left side when facing in the up direction). The opposite of down. The up direction is usually associated with even-numbered trains and signals. UP (US): The common name and reporting mark for the Union Pacific Railroad.

V

Definitions	Points of Interest
Vacuum brake A continuous train brake which is fail-safe in operation: the brake is powered by a vacuum from the locomotive but the application is actually by atmospheric pressure when the vacuum is released. Now largely superseded by the air brake. (goods) Van (UK), boxcar (US): An enclosed railroad car, or piece of rolling stock, used to transport freight. Van (CA): slang word for caboose.

W

Definitions	Points of Interest
Water glass/gauge: A device showing the level of water in the boiler. Way car: A term used by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, Chicago and North Western Railway and Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway instead of *caboose. Yardmaster: The person(s) responsible for conducting all traffic within the yard. The Yardmaster gives orders for which cars go where in order to assemble or disassemble a consist. Yellow*: A colour associated with a warning or a need to slow down when used by flags or signals; the exact meaning varies from railway system to railway.

Z

Definitions	Points of Interest
Zig zag, (U.S. commonly) switchback: a way of climbing hills, where the train reverses direction for a while, and then reverses again to continue its journey.

Further Information

Get more info on 'Rail Terminology'.

External Link Exchanges

Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:

<a href="http://rail_terminology.totallyexplained.com">Rail terminology Totally Explained</a>

Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned.