List of steepest gradients on adhesion railways
The inclusion of steep gradients on railways avoids the expensive engineering works required to produce more gentle gradients. However the maximum feasible gradient is limited by how much of a load the locomotive(s) can haul upwards. Braking when travelling downhill is also a limiting factor. There have been various solutions to hauling rail mounted vehicles up or down inclines. These include simple rail adhesion, rack railways and cable inclines (including rail mounted water tanks to carry barges). To help with braking on the descent, a non-load-bearing "brake rail" located between the running rails can be used, similar to the rail used in the Fell system, e.g. by the Snaefell Mountain Railway on the Isle of Man.
Tramways and light railways often have higher gradients than heavier railways. This is because all wheels are usually connected to engine power in order to give better acceleration. Grades of 5% are not uncommon on them. Metros and pure commuter railways often also allow higher gradients, over 4%, for the same reason. High-speed railways commonly allow 2.5% to 4% because the trains must be strong and have many wheels with power to reach very high speeds. For freight trains, gradients should be as gentle as possible, preferably below 1.5%.
Rack
Steep gradients can be overcome by the use of rack equipment, however it is not practical to equip all locomotives with such equipment. The list below is of some of the steepest gradients on adhesion railways.
The most gentle gradient on a rack railway is:
- 1 in 8 (12.5%) Skitube Alpine Railway.
Examples
(In reverse order of steepness).
(C = Compensated for curvature)
- 1 in 6.9 (14.5%) – Calçada de São Francisco, Lisbon, Portugal
- 1 in 8.6 (11.6%) – Pöstlingbergbahn, Austria
- 1 in 9 (11.1%) – Cass Scenic Railway (former logging railway) West Virginia, USA
- 1 in 9 (11%) or 1 in 10 (10%) - Estrada de Ferro Campos do Jordão, Brazil
- 1 in 11 (9.1%) – Allentown light rail line Pittsburgh, USA; Saint-Gervais–Vallorcine railway, France; Roaring Camp railroad, Felton CA, USA
- 1 in 12 (8.33%) – Nilgiri Mountain Railway, Tamil Nadu, India
- 1 in 12.6 (7.9%) – Uetliberg railway line, Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn, Switzerland
- 1 in 13.1 (7.6%) – St. Gallen–Trogen railway line, Appenzeller Bahnen, Switzerland
- 1 in 13.7 (7.3%) – Montreux–Oberland Bernois railway, Switzerland
- 1 in 14 (7.1%) – Hopton Incline, Cromford and High Peak Railway, England (this incline has only carried passengers, by adhesion, on enthusiast special trains, but is now completely closed)
- 1 in 14.2 (7.0%) – Bernina Pass, Switzerland; Sacramento Light Rail, Sacramento, California, USA
- 1 in 14.1 (7.1%) – Erzberg Railway, Austria
- 1 in 15.9 (6.3%) – Alishan Forest Railway Taiwan.
- 1 in 16.4 (6.1%) – Hunsrückbahn between Boppard and Buchholz, Germany. Built as rack railway
- 1 in 16.6 (6.0%) – Ligne de Cerdagne, France; Arica, Chile to Bolivia, with 100m radius curves.
- 1 in 17 (5.88%) – Docklands Light Railway, London at the entrance to the tunnel from the original London and Blackwall railway viaduct to the tunnel to Bank
- 1 in 18 (5.5%) – Near Alausi, Ecuador on line to Quito; Flåmsbanen, Norway; Höllentalbahn (Black Forest), Germany
- 1 in 19 (5.3%) – Camden Tram, New South Wales, Australia; Foxfield Railway, Staffordshire, England (this incline is on a preserved colliery railway which briefly carried passengers over this steep section but does not now do so normally); Kangra Valley Railway, Himachal Pradesh, India
- 1 in 20 (5.0%) - SOB Rapperswil - Samstagern, Switzerland
- 1 in 20 (5.0%)/1 in 25 (4.0%) – Matheran Hill Railway/Matheran Light Railway (Nr. Mumbai), India
- 1 in 22 (4.5%) – Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, India
- 1 in 22.5 (4.4%) – Thamshavn Line, Norway
- 1 in 23 (4.3%) – Ballochney incline (Ballochney Railway), Scotland; Causewayend incline (Slamannan Railway), Scotland (The steepest standard gauge inclines used regularly by passenger trains by adhesion in Britain - both closed to passengers from 1 May 1930 by the London & North Eastern Railway and since closed completely) [1]
- 1 in 25 (4.0%) – Cologne–Frankfurt high-speed rail line, Germany; Chosica - Galera, Central Railway of Peru; Selketalbahn, Germany; Cumbres Pass, Colorado
- 1 in c25 (4.0%) – Batlow, Oberon and Dorrigo branches, all New South Wales
- 1 in 26 (3.85%) – Iquique Railway, Mexico
- 1 in 27 (3.7%) – Werneth Incline, England (regular passenger service withdrawn 7 January 1963 and since closed completely);[2] Holywell Town branch, Wales(regular passenger service withdrawn 6 September 1954 and since closed completely);[3] Mauritius Railways [4]
- 1 in 28 (3.6%) – LGV Sud-Est high-speed line, France
See also
References
- ↑ Railway World, April 1963, p159
- ↑ Modern Railways, Nov 2009, p10; Railway World, February 1963, p76
- ↑ Railway World, April 1963, p159
- ↑ http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/13173084?searchTerm=break+gauge+patent#pstart1464144