Track gauge in North America
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The vast majority of North American railroads are standard gauge(4'-8 1/2"). Exceptions include some streetcar, subway and rapid transit systems and some narrow gauge lines particularly in the West, e.g. the isolated White Pass and Yukon Route system, and the former Newfoundland Railway.
As well as the usual reasons for having one gauge i.e. being able to operate through trains without transfer arrangements, the North American continent-wide system of freight car interchange with rolling stock having the same standard gauge, couplings, and air brakes meant that individual companies could minimise their rolling stock requirements by borrowing from other companies. Peak demand periods varied over the continent, with seasonal requirements e.g. for grain shipments occurring at different times in different areas so that freight cars could be redistributed to cover peaks as required.
Canada
In 1851 the 66 broad gauge, called the Provincial Gauge or Indian gauge, was universally adopted as the standard gauge for the Province of Canada. However in the 1870s, most Canadian railroads (apart from some narrow gauge lines, e.g. on the island of Newfoundland) were changed to standard gauge to facilitate interchange with U.S. railroads.
Canadian railroads originally built as broad gauge included the Grand Trunk Railway which was changed to standard gauge by 1873. Other broad gauge lines were the St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad and the Champlain and St. Lawrence Railroad until 1873, and the Intercolonial Railway of Canada until 1875.
The Toronto subway uses an overgauge of 58.875.
Guatemala
The narrow gauge railroad system of Guatemala no longer operates, see Rail transport in Guatemala.
Mexico
Mexico currently uses standard gauge. See Rail transport in Mexico
Panama
The Panama Railroad was originally 5 (Russian gauge) as in much of the South of the United States. This gauge was changed to 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) when it was rebuilt in 2000, see Rail transport in Panama.
United States
Originally, various gauges were used in the United States and Canada. Some railways, primarily in the northeast, used standard gauge; others used gauges ranging from 48 to 72. Problems began as soon as lines began to meet and in much of the north-eastern United States, standard gauge was adopted. In most of the southern states, the 5 ft (1,524 mm) gauge was preferred (a broad gauge which later was adopted by Russia for its new railroad and became known as Russian gauge). This configuration allowed for wider rolling stock that could more efficiently accommodate cotton bales, the most commonly transported good in the South at the time. A few standard gauge lines existed, and several other lines were built with even larger gauges. Break of gauge would prove to be a nightmare during the American Civil War, often hindering the Confederacy's ability to move goods efficiently over long distances.[1] The Pacific Railway Act of March 3, 1863 specified that the federally funded transcontinental railroad was to use standard gauge and helped to further popularize it among American railroads, although the standard gauge was already in use on many other lines prior to 1863.
Following the Civil War, trade between the South and North grew and the break of gauge became a major economic nuisance. Competitive pressures had forced all the Canadian railways to convert to standard gauge by 1880, and Illinois Central converted its south line to New Orleans to standard gauge in 1881, putting pressure on the southern railways.
The Indian gauge, also called the "Provincial gauge" or "Texas gauge" of 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm), was used by the New Orleans, Opelousas and Great Western Railroad (NOO&GW) until 1872, the Texas and New Orleans Railroad until 1876, and the Maine Central Railroad until 1871 (and is currently used by the Bay Area Rapid Transit System).
The Erie Railroad was originally 6 gauge, while adjacent railroads used the 4 ft 10 in (1,473 mm) or Ohio gauge. This led to the Erie Gauge War in 1853-54 when the Erie mayor and citizens temporarily prevented a gauge standardization, as there would then be less trans-shipping work and through passengers would no longer have to stopover at Erie. In the early days of rail transport in the United States, railroads tended to be built out of coastal cities into the hinterland, and systems did not connect. Each builder was free to choose its own gauge, although the availability of British-built locomotives encouraged some railroads to be built to standard gauge. As a general rule, southern railroads were built to one or another broad gauge, mostly 60, while northern railroads that were not standard-gauge tended to be narrow-gauge. Most of the original track in Ohio was built in 4 ft 10 in (1,473 mm) gauge, and special compromise cars were able to run on both this track and standard gauge track.[2] When American railroads' track extended to the point that they began to interconnect, it became clear that a single nationwide gauge would be a good idea.
Unification to standard gauge on May 31, 1886
In 1886, the southern railroads agreed to coordinate changing gauge on all their tracks. After considerable debate and planning, most of the southern rail network was converted from 60 gauge to 57 gauge, then the standard of the Pennsylvania Railroad, over two remarkable days beginning on Monday, May 31, 1886. Over a period of 36 hours, tens of thousands of workers pulled the spikes from the west rail of all the broad gauge lines in the South, moved them 3 in (76 mm) east and spiked them back in place. The new gauge was close enough that standard gauge equipment could run on it without problem. By June 1886, all major railroads in North America were using approximately the same gauge. The final conversion to true standard gauge took place gradually as track was maintained.[3] Now, the only broad-gauge rail systems in the United States are some city transit systems.
Non-standard systems in the U.S.
In modern uses certain isolated occurrences of non-standard gauges can still be found, such as the 62.25 and 62.5 gauge tracks of the Philadelphia streetcars, the Philadelphia Market-Frankford subway cars, Pittsburgh Light Rail and the New Orleans streetcars. The Bay Area Rapid Transit system in the San Francisco Bay Area, chose 66 gauge. The San Francisco cable cars use a narrow gauge of 42, as did the Los Angeles Railway and the San Diego Electric Railway until 1898, and that gauge is still widely used in the U.S. mining industry.[4]
See also
- Narrow gauge rail transport
- Narrow gauge railways in Canada
- Narrow gauge railroads in the United States
References
- ^ Hankey, John P. (2011). "The Railroad War". Trains. 71 (3). Kalmbach Publishing Company: 24–35.
- ^ John F. Stover (1995). History of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Purdue University Press.
- ^ Southern railfan
- ^ Stoek, H. H.; Fleming, J. R.; Hoskin, A. J. (1922). A Study of Coal Mine Haulage in Illinois. Vol. 132. University of Illinois. pp. 102–103. Retrieved June 22, 2011.
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