Portal:Trains/Did you know/November 2005

...that the first two steam locomotives used in present day Oregon for construction of the Northern Pacific Railway arrived there in 1870 by way of a ship that sailed around Cape Horn?
...that one of the most famous live steam miniature railroads was Walt Disney's Carolwood Pacific Railroad, which inspired Disney to surround his planned Disneyland amusement park with a working narrow gauge railroad?

...that the meter gauge Schafbergbahn in Austria began operations in 1893 and operates today using both steam and diesel locomotives?

...that an interlocking makes it impossible to give a clear (proceed) signal to a train if the switches are not aligned properly so that the train movement can be completely accomplished?

...that VIA Rail still operates a few combine cars in revenue service behind freight trains in far northern Manitoba which carry passengers, baggage and supplies for villages en route?
...that in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, large coal piers for transloading of coal from trains to ships were erected by railroad companies at ports on the Atlantic Coast and Great Lakes in the United States?

...that the Punktförmige Zugbeeinflussung (PZB) train safety system in use in Germany and Austria can automatically stop a train if certain conditions are not met?

...that examples of train ferries, watergoing ships designed to carry railway vehicles, can be found worldwide?

...that the collection of the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland, includes one mile (1.6 km) of track that is considered the most historic mile of railroad track in the United States?

...that the first electrically-operated Norwegian railway signals using lights were manufactured by AEG in 1924?

...that although several different companies comprise the Frankfurt Transit system, they all use the same fare schedule enabling passengers to purchase a single ticket for a journey that may include different modes of transport?

...that U.S. Patent 1 (under the new numbering system adopted in 1836) was awarded to John Ruggles on July 13, 1836, for a type of driving wheel designed to reduce the adverse effects of the weather on the track?

...that the Seaton Tramway features reduced-scale (1:2) replicas of classic British tram cars from various cities?

...that in the mid-20th century, the Čierny Hron Railway was the most extensive forest railway network in Czechoslovakia with over 130 km (81 miles) of track?
...that Melbourne's 4D was the only double decker train used in that city?

...that in some countries, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, and New Zealand, tank cars are called cylinder wagons or tank wagons.

...that the Class 120 electric locomotives operated by DB Fernverkehr were the first electric locomotives with three-phase motors?

...that before he began the Pullman Palace Car Company, George Pullman worked as a gold broker in Colorado?

...that because so many of the 2-6-4 type of steam locomotive were used in Austria in the 1900s and 1910s, the type is often called the Adriatic type in honor of the Adriatic Sea, which bordered Austria-Hungary until 1918?
...that when Union Pacific Railroad and Chicago and North Western Railway inaugurated the City of Denver in 1936, it was the fastest long distance passenger train in the world, traversing the 1,048 miles (1,687 km) between Chicago and Denver in as little as 16 hours, an average of about 65 mph (105 km/h)?

...that announcements of upcoming stations on Seoul Metropolitan Subway trains are made in both English and Korean?

...that the DeWitt Clinton was the first steam locomotive to operate in the U.S. state of New York?

...that when the electric locomotives of British Rail Class 77 were sold to Nederlandse Spoorwegen in 1969, they all retained their assigned names?

...that railroadiana refers to artifacts of currently or formerly operating railways, including datenails, timetables, brakeman's lanterns, locomotive nameplates, dining car linens and china, or items as big as speeders or even complete passenger cars?

...that the first 6-2-0 steam locomotives in the United States in the 1840s were designed to burn coal instead of wood, necessitating a much larger firebox than was used on other contemporary locomotives?

...that after passengers complained of uncomfortable pressure changes when entering tunnels at high speed on the LGV Atlantique, the TGV Réseau sets are now pressure sealed?

...that Fruit Growers Express was originally the produce-hauling subsidiary of Armour & Co. until 1919 the United States Federal Trade Commission ordered the company's sale for anti-trust reasons?

...that the report Richard Beeching issued in 1963 that has come to be known as the "Beeching Axe" recommended closing 6,000 miles (10,000 km) of Great Britain's nearly 18,000 miles (29,000 km) of track?