Train

Of rail-bound transport, a train consists of a continuation of Véhicule S which circulates along guides to transport travellers or goods of a point to another. These guides are generally two Rail S metal, but can also be a Monorail, a carrying cable (Téléphérique) or ruts. The movement of the train is often provided by a Locomotive which is a vehicle belonging to the convoy, but all the elements of the convoy can be motorisés : it is the case of the motorized . In the world, the majority of the trains advance thanks to a Diesel engine, but in Europe the electricity is a widespread mode of traction.

Formerly, the engines functioned thanks to the vapor and this until the medium of the XXe century. Other marginal modes of traction were (and are sometimes still) utilisés : animals (horses, oxen), cords and Capstan S, gravity, tire, turbines.

History

  • the word “train”, if it is indissociable today railroad, is however of river origin . Well before the invention of the railway, one called “train” a convoy of boats interdependent from/to each other, to share the crews and the energy of the wind. The largest boat, carrying the top sails, at the head, served as “engine”. This practice was enormously used on the the Loire, to go up it Nantes with Orleans, even upstream if the conditions, the wind especially, allowed it.

  • One also called “train” long the rafts formed by trunks or logs attached between them, with an aim of reducing of it a sufficiently solid boat thus wood from the mountains to the big cities by Flottage, as that was practiced on the Yonne of XVe at the XIXe centuries.

When the railroad was invented, it is quite naturally that the word was taken again, with a certain number of other expressions of the maritime and river world. For example, the first stations were named landing stages.

See also: History of the railroads

It is the February 21st 1804, close to Merthyr Tydfil, with the Wales, which had place the first circulation on rails of a Locomotive to vapor, built by Richard Trevithick, in (England). But of the convoys forming a train were announced well before. The first attested use of carriages on rails (not motorized) goes up with 1550, in the shape of engravings showing of the tip trucks on rail in the mines of Leberthal in Alsace. One supposes that the Romains could use a system similar to railways, some their roads being equipped with two ruts with fixed spacing, very near to that of our current way.

The generalization of the railway system was allowed by the settling of the steam engine, but of many alternative systems were used at the beginning, to face the lack of power of this one, or to adapt to typical locations.

As from approximately 1900, the appearance of powerful and sufficiently compact electrical motors, allowed the appearance of the electric traction, always used at present. This mode of traction requires however that the line on which the train circulates either equipped, or of a Caténaire, or of a Conductor rail, fed in electricity.

Between two wars will see the appearance of Locotracteur S diesel then gradually of engines in after war. Years 1950 are the hinge between disappearance of the steam traction and development of the thermal engines. It is also at that time that one observes the appearance of engines able to function under an alternating voltage.

The railway system

See also: Railway

The trains require a Railway to circulate. It is composed of Rail S posed on Traverse S with a spacing precise, posed on ballast. The energy source, either is carried by the train itself as in the case of the traction vapor or the diesel traction , or brought by the infrastructure in the form of Caténaire or of Conductor rail for the electricity.

The mode of bearing, which is a contact coils/rail (steel on steel) with reduced adherence, gives a relationship between power and tractor drawn load favorable but considerably reduced the acceptable declivities for the way: 4% are a maximum. Some Métro S have wheels provided with pneumatic, following tests of Michelin as of the Thirties. The first vehicles equipped were famous the Micheline S, kinds of small coaches on rail (the word was applied improperly to the rail-cars in general by the general public). Thereafter, the Paris-Strasbourg train laid out during several years of vehicles with tires.

The Radius of curvature of the ways should not go down in lower part from a hundred meters. These two strong constraints thus obliged the manufacturers with prowesses, in particular in mountainous area, by carrying out many works of art of Civil engineering like Pont S, Tunnel S, Viaduc S, fill, sliced. For the raised slopes, one has sometimes recourse to the system of toothed rack.

Contrary to a road vehicle, a train cannot change route by itself. It must borrow trackside equipment, of which most known are the Aiguillage S, in order to pass from a way to another. A strong constraint of exploitation is that a train can exceed of them another only at particular places of a line, from where a less flexibility in the organization of circulations and the need for a rigorous follow-up of the plans of walk.

Types of trains

The term “train” indicates several types of convoys. Most known consists of one (possibly several) Locomotive S and of the railway vehicles, cars or coaches. They can also be several autonomous elements constituting a train motorized. There also existed of the trains simply thorough to the hand or drawn by horses.

Types of completely special trains require an adapted way, for example the atmospheric railroads, the Monorail S, the Maglev S and others Funiculaire S.

Passenger trains

passenger trains are constituted by motorized (or Autorails if it is about diesel traction) or of tractor drawn oars made up of one or more engines and one or more cars. In certain countries (France, Spain, Germany, Korea, Japan,…) there exist trains at high speed, composed of material specific and rolling mainly on especially built or adapted lines.

The passenger trains are often adapted to the distances to traverse and the period of transport. They can integrate cars intended for the restoration, the relaxation or the sleep of the passengers. Thus, for the night trips one can borrow a Sleeper, or a Train car-berths which makes it possible to make transport its vehicle with oneself.

For the ways around a metropolis, the operating company makes circulate suburban trains. Those are equipped to be able to face the traffic of the rush hours: many doors and places upright. To ensure transport in the middle same cities, one has recourse to the Métro or the Tramway.

On lines with very weak traffic, one finds also goods and passenger trains travellers/goods, whereas on the lines with very strong traffic cars on two levels are used, as on the network Transilien and some TGV.

Many companies have as a use to classify their trains according to the distance covered and the service road. One thus often finds:

  • Slow train: applies to a train which serves all the stations of the course;
  • Express train: for a train which serves only the important localities;
  • non-stop Train: train without intermediate stop.

An renewed interest for the trains of formerly made develop tourist trains, like the Railroad of bay of Somme. These trains have the characteristic to be used with the walk and not for the real passenger transport.

Goods trains

The goods trains, called trains of freight in France, include/understand Wagon S or material with travellers having to be conveyed in the same direction. There exist types of coaches specialized according to the goods to transport, like the Wagon-citerne, the tipcart, the Covered truck, flat, etc Moreover in moreover it more frequently, a goods train consists of coaches in the same way standard (train of hydrocarbon, cereal train, etc). If all the coaches have the same origin and same the destinations, one speaks (in France) about non-stop train or block train, if the oar is made up of varied coaches having various destinations, one speaks about “diffuse” traffic (in France). A mail Train, in which possibly of the personnel works with the sorting of the mail in the course of road (situation become rare nowadays), belongs in France to the category “train of freight”.

The goods train must more and more adapt to the constraints of the Intermodalité transport. Trains transporting of the containers or the trailers can take part in a total chain, combined with the maritime transport and road transport.

In France, one calls Goods train a train having a speed ranging between 80 and 100 km/h, and Parcel train a circulating train from 120 to 200 km/h (trains known as MVGV).

Multiple traction

The traction of a train can be assured by several engines. It will be said that they are in “multiple unit” if the order is ensured by only one driver and in “double heading” if a driver is necessary by machine. The number of engines ensuring traction is often of 2, sometimes 3. Beyond that, they are engines in travelling goods (France) or like conveys (Belgium), or if the train comprises only engines of a Train of machines.

In other countries, with the the United States for example, it is frequent to find trains in triple, quadruple, or even quintuple traction. The complementary engines can be added in tail of train or even in the middle of the oar: that makes it possible to accelerate the braking of the very long trains and to decrease the efforts on the attachments.

In many countries the use of the expression “multiple unit” (UM) is normally reserved for the couplings of engines directed by only one driver, the orders being transmitted machine of head to following by the cablets of UM in the large majority of the cases. In the past, or if the engines are not compatible, one speaks about double heading. One then needs a driver by machine, they are transmitted the indications thanks to the whistle (France). It would seem that the radio is also authorized (France). In Belgium of the indicators are installed with the back of the engine of head in order to indicate if the pantographs are raised, if the driver of head tensile-tests, slows down, like some other indications on certain types of machines.

Other convoys

In the event of accident, one has Breakdown train, made up of equipment of raising and cars of lodging of the personnel. In certain countries, in particular in Switzerland where there would be a score of it, there exist also trains of firefighting, which have the role of intervening in the event of fire or of accident in the railway tunnels.

More frequently, one can have to meet a Train of work made up either of one or more driving machines and coaches, or of the motorized material specific to the various operations of way (Bourreuse, Régaleuse, Dégarnisseuse, train-overhead lines,…) ; they allow maintenance of the ways and works of art, and also with the construction of the new ways.

A train-washer is not regarded as a train of work; it circulates under the mode of the goods with a specific speed on its course of work.

The Draisine S (light railcars being used for the routing of the personnel in charge of maintenance with the ways on the building sites) drawing or not one or more barges (light trailers punts being used for transport of the tools and the light material) are regarded as a train if they are able to close the Circuit track.

An isolated railway vehicle is not considered technically as a train (but the being according to the regulation can).

Passenger trains in the world

Germany

The rail-bound transport is particularly developed in Germany. The type of the most known train is the InterCityExpress (ICE), homologous with the French TGV, it remotely by its composition out of traditional oar made up of harnessed independent cars (not articulated). This train serves the principal big cities and certain countries bordering: Switzerland, Austria, Belgium. There is a pendular version, the ICE-T. Not to confuse with the ICN, so pendular Switzerland, him. Lastly, the Cisalpino which serves Germany, Switzerland and Italy.

The old network of the Express trains Europeans (TEE) was taken again under the name of InterCity (IC). The network includes/understands lines ICE. The relations with long course with the foreigner are included in the category Eurocity (EC.). Many night trains belong to this category which guarantees to its passengers the respect of quality standards as various as the air-conditioning and the downtimes in station. Another network of night trains is that called CityNightLine, ensured by the companies dB (Germany), OBB (Austria) and CF (Swiss). It circulates on 11 relations. The interregional courses are ensured by the trains gathered under the name of InterRegio (IR).

There exists more than two hundred companies, of which around fifty accomplishes passenger transport at the local level.

in Belgium

  • Thalys
  • TGV Brussels-France
  • Eurostar
  • ICE
  • IC (intercity)
  • IR (interrégion)
  • L (local), they are the slow trains
  • P (point)
  • CR (cityrail), premise of future network the RER of Brussels
  • EuroCity (EC.)

in Spain

in France

  • Network Regional express (the RER)
  • Coral: Téoz, Lunéa
  • Transport regional express (FOR THE THIRD TIME), whose course is carried out in only one area or with horse on two areas
  • Thalys: from Paris towards Belgium and the Netherlands
  • Transilien: only in area Ile-de-France
  • Train at high speed (TGV)

in Italy

in Japan

in Norway

  • Krengetog

in the United Kingdom

in Russia

in Sweden

  • X2000, train at high speed

in Switzerland

In Switzerland, the Alps are the largest obstacle of the Swiss railroads (SBB CF FFS). This is why the project of NLFA was born. The construction of long basic tunnels is in hand.
  • BLS (Bern - Lötschberg - Simplon)
  • Cisalpino (departures for Milan from Geneva, Basle, Bern, Zurich)
  • IC (Inter City)
  • ICN

Switzerland has also many small lines of mountain. The principal ones are:

  • Matterhorn-Gotthard-Bahn (Zermatt - Furka - Oberalp - Disentis/Mustér)
  • rhetic Railroads (RhB, in German Rhätische Bahn )
  • MCC (Martigny - Châtelard - Chamonix)
  • MO-MC (Martigny - Sembrancher - Orsières/Le Châble)
  • MOB (Montreux - Gstaad - Lenk, Montreux - Rocks of Naie, Vevey - Pleiads,…)
  • TPC (Al Eagle - Leysin, AOMC Eagle - Ollon - Monthey - Champéry, ASD Eagle - Seppey - Diablerets, BVB Bex - Villars - Bretaye)

See also the List of the Swiss railroads.

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