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An SNCB Class 13 electric locomotive is at the head of a passenger train at Eupen railway station, Belgium, in June 2007

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In rail transport, a train is a vehicle or (more frequently) a string of vehicles capable of being moved along a continuous line of rails or other guideway for the purpose of conveying freight or passengers between points on a predetermined route. The train may be hauled or propelled by one or more vehicles designed exclusively for that purpose (locomotives) or may be driven by a number of motors incorporated in all or several of the vehicles (multiple units).

As of 2018^[update], there are approximately 1,052,000 kilometres (654,000 mi) of railway track in use worldwide. (World Bank (via Archive.org))

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Selected article of the week

The Chemin de fer des Côtes-du-Nord (abbr. CdN, lit. Railway of the Côtes-du-Nord), the Côtes-d'Armor today, was a 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) gauge railway in Côtes-du-Nord, France, although there were a few kilometres of line in Finistère and Ille-et-Vilaine. The first lines opened in 1905 and final closure was in 1956. The lines were a voies ferrées d'intérêt local system with a total extent of 457 kilometres (284 mi). The system was constructed in two stages, the initial lines built between 1905 and 1907, and the extensions during and after the First World War which were opened between 1916 and 1926. These lines would make the CdN slightly bigger than the Réseau Breton. The first closures were in 1937, but the Second World War gave the CdN a stay of execution, and parts of the system remained open until 1956.

Recently selected: Victorian Railways A2 class - LNER Class A1/A3 - ALCO FA

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Selected image of the week

[[Image:|300px|none|JNR freight in Hokkaidō]]

A Japanese National Railways (JNR) freight train in Hokkaidō on March 13, 1973. JNR was formed in 1949 as a state-owned public corporation, and launched the high-speed Shinkansen service in 1964. However, the network's rapid expansion also pulled it further and further into debt as it took out huge loans to fund new capital projects. By 1987, JNR's debt was over ¥25 trillion ($200 billion), which led to the company's privatisation into several companies collectively called the Japan Railways Group (JR Group).

Recently selected: "Fast Express" US postage stamp - Christmas special in Austria - Train horn

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Did you know...

...that the opening ceremonies of the Galway to Clifden railway were very sparsely attended because the event date was a strict church holiday and was reserved for attending church services?
...that following heavy damage to the Galveston Island Trolley track and cars from Hurricane Ike in 2008, substitute service with replica buses was operated until service resumed in October 2021?
...that although the former Santa Fe Railway's Galesburg station was demolished after regular passenger service to the station ended in 1996, the site is still used if derailments cause trains to use the Chillicothe Subdivision instead of the Mendota Subdivision?
...that the Fuzhou–Xiamen railway, which opened in 2010, was so heavily used that it reached capacity in 2015, spurring construction on the parallel Fuzhou–Xiamen high-speed railway for CRH passenger train services?

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Selected anniversaries

February 25

Main-Neckar-Eisenbahn at Ladenburg in 1900

1834 – The Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad is formed to connect cities in Virginia.
1843 – The Grand Duke of Hesse and Grand Duke of Baden in present day Germany agree to construct the Main-Neckar-Eisenbahn (pictured) from Heidelberg to a connection with the state railway in Baden.
1851 – The first passenger train on the Milwaukee Road operates over what is then known as the Milwaukee and Mississippi Railroad between Milwaukee, and Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.
2005 – Bombardier is awarded a contract to build 361 passenger cars for the new Qingzang railway to Lhasa, Tibet; due to the destination's altitude the cars include special UV-filtering glass and a unique oxygen enriching system.

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Train News

Santa Fe No. 2926 at Albuquerque, New Mexico
July 24, 2021 – Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe No. 2926, a 4-8-4 steam locomotive built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1944, moves under its own power for the first time since Christmas Eve of 1953, after nearly twenty-two years of being rebuilt by volunteers. The locomotive will be put into mainline excursion service. (NMSL&RHS, Trains Magazine on Facebook)
Big Boy No. 4012 at Steamtown National Historic Site
May 5, 2021 – Steamtown National Historic Site completes thorough cosmetic overhaul on Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 Big Boy No. 4012, which is moved back on static display before National Train Day. (NEPA Scene)
The derailed Taroko Express trainset, as seen from outside the entrance to the tunnel
April 2, 2021 – 2021 Hualien train derailment – A Taroko Express train operated by the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) derails at the north entrance of Qingshui Tunnel in Heren Section, Xiulin Township, Hualien County, Taiwan, killing 49 people and injuring at least 200 others. North of Hualien City a construction truck had fallen down a slope onto the tracks. The eight-carriage train derailed after colliding with the truck, and then came to a rest in the tunnel, with severe damage and many casualties. (Bloomberg, CNN, CNA, New York Times, Financial Times)

The preserved C&O 1309 at the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum in October 2009

December 31, 2020 – Following a complete restoration, Chesapeake and Ohio 1309, a 2-6-6-2 Mallet locomotive built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1949, the last steam locomotive built by Baldwin for the North American market, is operated under its own power for test runs. When returned to service on the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, it will be the largest steam locomotive in regular scheduled service in the United States and take 2-8-0 No. 734’s place as the largest active steam locomotive in the state of Maryland. (Trains.com Newswire)

An Avelia Liberty train on a test run in Delaware in May 2020

September 28, 2020 – Amtrak operates a test run using one of the 28 new Avelia Liberty trains manufactured by Alstom along the full length of the Northeast Corridor to Boston South Station. Previous test runs had occurred from Washington, D.C., only as far north as New Jersey and Delaware. Barring any problems, the trains are expected to enter regular service on the route in 2021. (Universal Hub)

Berryessa/North San José station on the first day of service

June 13, 2020 – The Bay Area Rapid Transit Silicon Valley BART extension opened its stations in Milpitas and North San Jose. (San Jose Spotlight, SF Gate)

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General images

The following are images from various train-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The EMD FT set the stage for diesel locomotives to take over from steam. (from Train)
Image 2British Rail Mark 3 coach, an all-steel car from the 1970s (from Railroad car)
Image 3A coach yard in Shanghai, China (from Rail yard)
Image 4Baltimore & Ohio electric engine, 1895 (from Locomotive)
Image 5Various types of railroad cars in a classification yard in the United States (from Train)
Image 6Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare, by Claude Monet, 1877, Art Institute of Chicago (from Train)
Image 7A Tokyo Monorail train (from Train)
Image 8The New Orleans Streetcar System is one of the oldest in the world. (from Train)
Image 9Second-class compartment of a China Railways CRH1A-A train (from Train)
Image 10Southern Railway (UK) 20002 was equipped with both a pantograph and contact shoes. (from Locomotive)
Image 11Most derailments, such as this one in Switzerland, are minor and do not cause injuries or damage. (from Train)
Image 12A Metropolitan line S8 Stock at Amersham in London (from Railroad car)
Image 13A Victorian Railways R class steam locomotive in Australia (from Locomotive)
Image 14A freight car (boxcar type) for the South Australian Railways, 1926 (from Railroad car)
Image 15The ESS 200 electric locomotive was introduced in 1925 in the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia. (from Locomotive)
Image 16The 1887 Daimler draisine (from Locomotive)
Image 17The "hump" of a hump yard. Railcars travel past retarders, which control their speed, and are directed onto tracks to be assembled into new trains. The control tower operates the retarders. (from Rail yard)
Image 18Typical American extended vision caboose (from Railroad car)
Image 19A British Rail Class 150 in the United Kingdom (from Railroad car)
Image 20This cab car includes a horn (top), a bell (top right), headlights (above the door), classification lights (red lights on side), and ditch lights (white lights on side). (from Train)
Image 21A prototype of a Ganz AC electric locomotive in Valtellina, Italy, 1901 (from Locomotive)
Image 22Stockton and Darlington special inaugural train 1825: six wagons of coal, directors coach, then people in wagons. (from Train)
Image 23A London Underground battery–electric locomotive used for hauling engineers' trains, at West Ham station (from Locomotive)
Image 24China operates an extensive high speed rail network. (from Train)
Image 25The first useful diesel locomotive (a diesel–electric) for long distances, the SŽD Eel2, 1924 in Kyiv (from Locomotive)
Image 26A gas turbine locomotive operated by the Union Pacific Railroad (from Train)
Image 27Workington stabling point in 1981, with locomotives from Classes 25, 40 and 47 parked between duties. (from Rail yard)
Image 28A wooden toy train set from Swedish manufacturer Brio (from Train)
Image 29Škoda Artic light rail train near the cathedral in Tampere, Finland (from Train)
Image 30An interior of a Circle line S7 Stock in London (from Railroad car)
Image 31Variety of rolling stock in rail yard (from Rolling stock)
Image 32Bombardier ALP-45DP, at the Innotrans convention in Berlin (from Locomotive)
Image 33Schedule of train departure times in Indonesia stations (from Train)
Image 34A large Amtrak and Metra coach yard just south of Chicago Union Station. About 25 percent of all rail traffic in the United States travels through the Chicago area. (from Rail yard)
Image 35A narrow-gauge battery–electric locomotive used for mining (from Locomotive)
Image 36Werner von Siemens experimental DC electric train, 1879 (from Locomotive)
Image 37Pacific National diesel locomotives in Australia showing three body types, cab unit (front), hood unit (middle) and box cab (rear) (from Locomotive)
Image 38Garratt locomotives in Zimbabwe (from Train)
Image 39Electric train on Djursholmsbanan in Stockholm in the 1890s. (from Train)
Image 40Trains carrying hazardous materials display information identifying their cargo and hazards. This tank car carrying chlorine displays, among other markings, a U.S. DOT placard showing a UN number that identifies the hazardous substance. (from Train)
Image 41A China Railways HXD1D electric locomotive in China (from Locomotive)
Image 42Restored clerestory cars on display at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin (from Railroad car)
Image 43Inside a modern-day car from Finland (from Railroad car)
Image 44Armored train Hurban located in Zvolen, Slovakia (from Railroad car)
Image 45This map of Cedar Hill Yard in Connecticut shows a variety of different facilities, including receiving yards, departure yards, classification yards, and a repair yard. (from Rail yard)
Image 46The Japanese 0 Series Shinkansen pioneered high speed rail service. (from Train)
Image 47A number of maintenance vehicles at work on Metro-North Railroad (from Train)
Image 48US-style railroad truck (bogie) with journal bearings (from Train)
Image 49The Union Pacific Big Boy locomotives represented the pinnacle of steam locomotive technology and power. (from Train)
Image 50A Union Pacific freight train; high clearances enable double-stacked containers to be carried in well cars. (from Train)
Image 51Yard for Amtrak equipment, located next to the Los Angeles River. The two tracks on the left are the mainline. (from Rail yard)
Image 52A preserved armored train (from Train)
Image 53A narrow gauge train in Austria (from Train)
Image 54Soviet RT-23 Molodets ICBM launch train, in the St Petersburg museum (from Railroad car)