ground signal
nounRail equipment
A dwarf railway signal, mounted close to the ground.
Rail equipment
250 entries in this trade.
hammer blow
nounRail equipment
A pounding of the rails by the driving wheels of a steam locomotive caused by the inertia of unbalanced parts.
headcode
nounRail equipment
A code used to distinguish classes of train for the benefit of signalmen, formerly by using white oil lamps (or white discs) placed on brackets on the front of the locomotive. The various lamp positions defined the class of train.
heavy rail
nounRail equipment
A term generally applied to main-line railways, but this varies from country to country. It has no relation to the weight of the rails used.
helper grade
nounRail equipment
A railroad gradient where helper locomotives are required to assist the train locomotives.
heritage railway
nounRail equipment
A railway operating a line with preserved and restored locomotives, trains and infrastructure, and usually providing train services for visitors; in effect a working open-air museum.
high-speed rail
nounRail equipment
A type of rail transport that operates significantly faster than traditional rail traffic, using an integrated system of specialized rolling stock and dedicated tracks.
higher-speed rail
nounRail equipment
A type of railway system based on existing infrastructure upgraded to allow passenger train speeds typically between 80 and 120 miles per hour.
home signal
nounRail equipment
A railway signal controlling entry to the next section of line. Originally it meant a signal governing entry into a station.
hourly rating
nounRail equipment
A measure of the maximum output, usually expressed in horsepower, that can be obtained from the motors of an electric locomotive for a period of one hour without the motors overheating.
hump slug
nounRail equipment
A kind of slug (locomotive accessory) designed for even slower operation than a yard slug, and able to push a long cut of cars over a hump at very low speed.
hump yard
nounRail equipment
a classification yard or marshalling yard which has a hump over which trains are shunted, the vehicles then running on their own by gravity into various sidings.
interlocking tower
nounRail equipment
A building or room that houses controls for switches.
island platform
nounRail equipment
A railway platform which has tracks on both sides.
Jacobs bogie
nounRail equipment
A design of bogie used for articulated passenger trains and trams, where the ends of two cars are mounted on the same bogie.
joint line
nounRail equipment
A railway that is or was owned and operated by more than one company.
kinematic envelope
nounRail equipment
The outline of the space occupied by a rail vehicle when in motion, including the effects of tilt, sway, track cant, etc.
land bridge
nounRail equipment
A relatively fast rail or road route over land, especially one for transporting goods.
level junction
nounRail equipment
An at-grade junction between two crossing railroad tracks.
lever frame
nounRail equipment
A frame in a signal box in which levers that operate signals and points are mounted.
lifting shop
nounRail equipment
A workshop where vehicles are lifted off their bogies for maintenance work to be carried out.
light engine
nounRail equipment
A locomotive running on its own, or with other powered locomotives, with no wagons or carriages attached.
light rail
nounRail equipment
A kind of passenger railway in urban and suburban settings typically characterized by a mixture of tram (or in North America streetcar) and metro features, crossing streets at grade crossings and normally powered by electricity.
light railway
nounRail equipment
A railway built at a lower cost, with a lighter track and to a lower standard than a main-line railway.
line speed
nounRail equipment
The maximum speed at which trains can run on a given railway line, or section of line.
loading bank
A platform, often with a ramp at one or both ends, provided in a railway goods yard for the purpose of loading and unloading goods wagons.
locking frame
nounRail equipment
A frame for interlocking in a signal box, normally located in the locking room, which is operated by a lever frame in the operating room above it.
locking room
nounRail equipment
A room in a signal box, usually at ground level beneath the operating room, containing the interlocking mechanism for signals and points (track switches) below the lever frame in the operating room.
logging railroad
nounRail equipment
A railroad built for the purpose of transporting logs out of a forest.
long-welded
adjectiveRail equipment
Of rails for railway track, welded into longer lengths, usually before they are laid, to help eliminate jointed track.
mail car
nounRail equipment
A railroad car in which mail is carried and sorted.
match wagon
nounRail equipment
A wagon attached to a rail-mounted crane to support the jib when the crane is being hauled in a train.
mean distance between failure
nounRail equipment
A measure of reliability that expresses the average distance travelled by a type of lorry, bus, rolling stock, etc, before preventative or reparative maintenance is required.
mineral wagon
nounRail equipment
An open goods wagon with relatively high sides for the transport of minerals such as coal or iron ore.
mini-shinkansen
nounRail equipment
A conventional Japanese rail line which has been upgraded to allow use by shinkansen; generally to allow the continuation of shinkansen services beyond the end of a purpose-built, high-speed line.
mixed train
nounRail equipment
A train consisting of both passenger coaches and freight vehicles.
motive power
nounRail equipment
The locomotives or other powered units that operate on a railway.
motive power depot
nounRail equipment
A place where locomotives are housed, maintained and repaired.
multiple unit
nounRail equipment
A train consisting of one or more self-propelled cars capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one cab.
neutral section
nounRail equipment
A dead section of overhead line for supplying power to trains between two live sections, used to separate two power supplies, different phases and supply voltages.
Norwegian coupling
nounRail equipment
A manually operated coupling at each end of some narrow-gauge railway rolling stock, consisting of a central buffer incorporating a hook that drops into a slot in the opposing central buffer.
observation car
nounRail equipment
A railway passenger car made so as to facilitate seeing the scenery en route, sometimes with glass sides or with a kind of open balcony at the rear.
one under
A person under a train; a person hit by a train after jumping or falling in front of it.
open wagon
nounRail equipment
An uncovered vehicle used for goods that do not need protection from the weather, although tarpaulins can be used to cover the load.
out of gauge
prep phraseRail equipment
Of rail vehicles, or loads carried on freight vehicles: where dimensions exceed the loading gauge or structure gauge for a particular line or route.
parliamentary train
nounRail equipment
Originally a requirement in the Railway Regulation Act 1844 for railways to run at least one train a day each way, at a cost to passengers of no more than one penny a mile, on every railway line in the country. Presently the term is used for passenger trains that serve a line or station only once a day or week to avoid the cost of applying for closure.
passenger car
nounRail equipment
A railroad car designed to carry passengers.
petticoat pipe
nounRail equipment
A short, flaring pipe surrounding the blast nozzle in the smokebox of a locomotive, to equalize the draft.
pilotman
nounRail equipment
A railway employee who directs operations over a section of railway line temporarily reduced to single track, e.g. during maintenance work, or within an unsignalled area or over a line unfamiliar to the engine crew.
platform loop
nounRail equipment
A short stretch of railway line at a railway station which leaves a through line to serve a platform, before rejoining the through line beyond the station.
private siding
nounRail equipment
a railway siding owned by a company, also possibly served by their own locomotive, which is connected to and served by a railway, but is not part of the railway's infrastructure.
rack railway
nounRail equipment
A railway that uses a rack and pinion mechanism.
rail anchor
nounRail equipment
A spring steel clip that attaches to the underside of the rail baseplate and bears against the sides of the sleepers to prevent longitudinal movement of the rail.
rail head
nounRail equipment
The top part of a railway rail; the part of the rail the wheel runs on.
rail joint
nounRail equipment
A join between two rails in a railway track placed end to end; the rails are joined by fishplates where joints are not welded.
rail spike
nounRail equipment
A type of large nail with an offset head used to fasten a rail or base plate to a wooden railroad tie/sleeper.
rail trail
nounRail equipment
A former railway track converted into a multi-use path, typically as a greenway for walking and cycling.
rail wagon
nounRail equipment
A flat wagon used for carrying railway rails.
railroad spike
nounRail equipment
A type of large nail that fixes a railway line to a sleeper.
railroad track
nounRail equipment
A pair of formed steel rails, separated and supported usually on wooden or concrete ties or sleepers, forming a track along which flange-wheeled railroad vehicles may travel.