Handcar

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A handcar, in original condition (at the Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum). The foot brake operating mechanism may be seen between the wheels.
A handcar, in original condition (at the Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum). The foot brake operating mechanism may be seen between the wheels.
Handcar riding along the Murmansk railroad, on the shore of Lake Onega. (circa 1910)
Handcar riding along the Murmansk railroad, on the shore of Lake Onega. (circa 1910)
A magic lantern image from circa 1895, shows four natives from British India pushing a hand-car in Bolan Pass, Pakistan.
A magic lantern image from circa 1895, shows four natives from British India pushing a hand-car in Bolan Pass, Pakistan.
Rail-cycle with 4 wheels. A single bicycle may also be modified with an outrigger and locating wheels to operate upon rails
Rail-cycle with 4 wheels. A single bicycle may also be modified with an outrigger and locating wheels to operate upon rails
Zusō Handcar Tramway in Yugawara, Japan, 1895-1924.
Zusō Handcar Tramway in Yugawara, Japan, 1895-1924.
Model of Taishaku Handcar Tramway, showing method of operation.
Model of Taishaku Handcar Tramway, showing method of operation.

A handcar (also known as a pump trolley, pump car, jigger or Kalamazoo[1]) is a railroad car powered by its passengers, or by people pushing the car from behind. It is mostly used as a maintenance of way or mining car, but it was also used for passenger service in some cases. A typical design consists of an arm that pivots, seesaw-like, on a base, which the passengers alternately push down and pull up to move the car.

Handcars have been normally used by railroad service personnel for railroad inspection and maintenance. Due to their low weight they can be put on and off the rails at any place. Handcars have since been replaced by self propelled vehicles that do not require the use of manual power, instead relying on diesel or electricity to move the vehicle.

Handcars are nowadays used by handcar enthusiasts to organize races between handcars driven by five person teams (one to push the car from a halt, four to pump the lever).

Contents

[edit] Australia

In Australia hand car or pump carts are commonly referred to as Kalamazoos after the US manufacturing company that provided many examples to the Australian railway market.[1] Many Kalamazoos are preserved in Australia, some even being used for races.[2]

[edit] Bamboo cart

In Cambodia and other developing countries, local citizens sometimes make their own unofficial carts to transport goods along the railway tracks.

[edit] Japan

In Japan, dozens of commercially operated handcar railway lines, called human car tramway (人車軌道 jinsha kidō?) or human car railway (人車鉄道 jinsha tetsudō?) existed in early 20th century. [3] Those lines were purely built for its passenger/freight service, and "drivers" pushed small train cars all the way. The first line, Fujieda-Yaizu Tramway, opened in 1891, and most of others opened before 1910. Most lines were very short with less than 10 km lengths, and the rail gauges used were either 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) or 2 ft (610 mm). As the human-powered system was fairly inefficient, many handcar tramways soon changed their power resources to either horse or gasoline. The system was not strong against a competition with other modes of transport, such as trucks, horses, buses, or other railways. Taishaku Handcar Tramway ceased its operation as early as 1912, and almost all the lines were already closed before 1945.

[edit] List of handcar tramways existed in Japan

[edit] Taiwan

In Taiwan, commercially operated handcars were called either light railway line (Traditional Chinese: 輕便線; Hanyu Pinyin: qīngbiàn-xiàn), hand-pushed light railway line (手押輕便線; shǒuyā qīngbiàn-xiàn), hand-pushed tramway (手押軌道; shǒuyā guǐdào), or most commonly, hand-pushed wagon (手押臺車; shǒuyā táichē). [3]. The first line was built in 1870s. The network developed later under Japanese rule. In 1933, its peak, there were more than 50 lines in the island with 1,292 km network, transporting local passengers, coals, factory products, sugars, salts, bananas, tea leaves, and others. Most lines, excluding those in mines and isolated islands, have disappeared after Japanese have left. However, a few lines survived well until 1970s. Currently, only the sightseeing line in Wūlái still exists, although its line is not human-powered anymore.

[edit] In popular culture

Handcars are a recurring plot device of twentieth century filmic comedy. For example, the opening scene of Blazing Saddles, depicting railroad construction, features a handcar.

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b Kalamazoo Railroad Velocipede and Car Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.. Retrieved on 2008-03-22.
  2. ^ Cummins Kalamazoo. Annual handcar race event at Cummins, South Australia. Retrieved on 2008-03-22.
  3. ^ a b These English names are just tentative translations for this article.

[edit] External links