A narrow-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge narrower than 1,435 mmstandard gauge. Most narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm and 1,067 mm.
A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of 1,435 mm. The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge, international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the most widely used track gauge around the world, with about 55% of the lines in the world using it.
The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway is a 15 in minimum gauge heritage railway in Cumbria, England. The 7-mile (11.3 km) line runs from Ravenglass to Dalegarth Station near Boot in the valley of Eskdale, in the Lake District. At Ravenglass the line ends at Ravenglass railway station on the Cumbrian Coast Line.
In rail transport, track gauge is the distance between the two rails of a railway track. All vehicles on a rail network must have wheelsets that are compatible with the track gauge. Since many different track gauges exist worldwide, gauge differences often present a barrier to wider operation on railway networks.
The Carolwood Pacific Railroad (CPRR) was a 7+1⁄4-inch gauge ridable miniature railroad run by Walt Disney in the backyard of his home in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It featured the Lilly Belle, a 1:8-scale live steam locomotive named after Disney's wife, Lillian Disney, and built by the Walt Disney Studios' machine shop. The locomotive made its first test run on December 24, 1949. It pulled a set of freight cars, as well as a caboose that was almost entirely built by Disney himself. It was Disney's lifelong fascination with trains, as well as his interest in miniature models, that led to the creation of the CPRR. The railroad, which became operational in 1950, was 2,615 feet (797 m) long and encircled his house. The backyard railroad attracted visitors to Disney's home; he invited them to ride and occasionally drive his miniature train. In 1953, after an accident occurred in which a guest was injured, the CPRR was closed to the public.
The Disneyland Railroad (DRR), formerly known as the Santa Fe & Disneyland Railroad, is a 3-foot narrow-gauge heritage railroad and attraction in the Disneyland theme park of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, United States. Its route is 1.2 miles (1.9 km) long and encircles the majority of the park, with train stations in four different park areas. The rail line, which was constructed by WED Enterprises, operates with two steam locomotives built by WED and three historic steam locomotives originally built by Baldwin Locomotive Works. The ride takes roughly 18 minutes to complete a round trip on its mainline when three trains are running, and 20 minutes when four trains are running. Two to four trains can be in operation at any time, three on average.
Live steam is steam under pressure, obtained by heating water in a boiler. The steam may be used to operate stationary or moving equipment.
A backyard railroad is a privately owned, outdoor railroad, most often in miniature, but large enough for one or several persons to ride on. The rail gauge can be anything from 2+1⁄2 in to 7+1⁄2 in or more. Smaller backyard or outdoor railroads that cannot be ridden are called garden railroads. Some backyard railroads use full-size rolling stock, such as the former 3 ft narrow gauge Grizzly Flats Railroad owned by railfan and Disney animator Ward Kimball.
William Jones (1884–1968), a seasoned veteran of the steam era who established the Wildcat Railroad in Los Gatos, California, was born the son of a teamster in the town of Ben Lomond, California.
Vasona Lake County Park is a park located in Los Gatos, California and part of the Santa Clara County Parks system. Vasona Park surrounds the Vasona Reservoir. Adjacent to the park are the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad, a ridable miniature railway, and the W.E. "Bill" Mason Carousel at the Oak Meadow Park.
A ridable miniature railway is a large scale, usually ground-level railway that hauls passengers using locomotives that are often models of full-sized railway locomotives.
The Eaton Hall Railway was an early 15 in gauge minimum gauge estate railway built in 1896 at Eaton Hall in Cheshire. The line, which connected the Grosvenor estate with sidings at Balderton on the GWR Shrewsbury to Chester Line about 3 miles (4.8 km) away, opened in 1896. It was built for the Duke of Westminster by Sir Arthur Percival Heywood, who had pioneered the use of 15 in gauge with his Duffield Bank Railway at his house at Duffield, Derbyshire in 1874.
Gn15 is a rail modelling scale, using G scale 1:22.5 scale trains running on H0/00 gauge track, representing minimum gauge and miniature railways. Typical models built are between 1:20.3 and 1:24, or up to 1:29.
The Viewliner Train of Tomorrow was a 2 ft 6 in narrow-gauge, miniature train that once operated alongside portions of the Disneyland Railroad main line.
The Western River Railroad is a 2 ft 6 in narrow gauge rail transport attraction in Tokyo Disneyland, which opened on April 15, 1983. Its route is 5,283 feet (1,610 m) long and takes guests through the Adventureland, Westernland, and Critter Country sections.
The Fort Wilderness Railroad (FWRR) was a 3.5-mile (5.6 km), 2 ft 6 in narrow-gauge heritage railroad located at Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground in Walt Disney World. The railroad officially opened on January 1, 1974, and provided transportation for the resort's various campsites. Due to issues with track maintenance, pedestrian safety, noise concerns, and the low fuel capacity of its steam locomotives, the FWRR closed permanently in February 1980. Railroad ties remain in place along certain sections of the railroad's former right-of-way, and its four locomotives and surviving passenger cars are now owned by private collectors.
The Grizzly Flats Railroad (GFRR) was a 3-foot narrow-gauge heritage railroad owned by Disney animator Ward Kimball at his home in San Gabriel, California. The railroad had 900 feet (274.3 m) of trackage, and was operated from 1942 to 2006. It was the first full-size backyard railroad in the United States.
Fifteen-inch gauge railways were pioneered by Sir Arthur Percival Heywood who was interested in what he termed a minimum gauge railway for use as estate railways or to be easy to lay on, for instance, a battlefield. In 1874, he described the principle behind it as used for his Duffield Bank Railway, distinguishing it from a "narrow-gauge" railway. Having previously built a small railway of 9 in gauge, he settled on 15 in gauge as the minimum that he felt was practical.
Numerous industrial narrow-gauge lines were built for peat extraction, clay extraction for brickworks and construction sites. The dominant gauge for industrial lines was 700 mm, contrary to the 600 mm gauge used in neighbouring countries.
Two foot and 600 mm gauge railways are narrow gauge railways with track gauges of 2 ft and 600 mm, respectively. Railways with similar, less common track gauges, such as 1 ft 11+3⁄4 in and 1 ft 11+1⁄2 in, are grouped with 2 ft and 600 mm gauge railways.
