Power at rail

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The power at rail is the amount of power which a train applies to achieve the tractive effort.

Power at rail is measured in kilowatts.

The power at rail of a train follows the equation power (kW) = force (kN) x speed (m/s)

A sample of UK rail locomotives are included on the below table to illustrate their power at rail.

Class	Type	Top speed		Maximum tractive effort	Speed to reduce tractive effort	Continuous tractive effort	Maximum power at rail	Mass
Class	Type	mph	km/h	Maximum tractive effort	Speed to reduce tractive effort	Continuous tractive effort	Maximum power at rail	Mass
Class 08	Shunter	15		156 kN	8.8 mph	49 kN	194 kW	49.6 - 50.4 t
Class 33	Passenger	85		200 kN	17.5 mph	116 kN	906 kW	77.7 t
Class 56	Light freight	80		275 kN	16.8 mph	240 kN	1790kW	125.2 t
Class 58	Light freight	80		275 kN	17.4 mph	240 kN	1780 kW	130 t
Class 59	Heavy freight	60 or 75		506 kN	14.3 mph	291 kN	1889 kW	121 t
Class 60	Heavy freight	60		500 kN	17.4 mph	336 kN	1800 kW	129-131 t
Class 66	Heavy freight	75		409 kN	15.9 mph	260 kN	1850 kW	126 t
Class 67	Light freight	125	200	141 kN	?? mph	90 kN	1860 kW	90 t

The power at rail only includes the power which reaches the rail to create tractive effort and excludes power which is used for heating, cooling, lighting, etc. and also excludes power wasted by inefficiencies of the vehicle (including the production of sound and heat energy).