A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also generally classed as DMUs. Diesel-powered units may be further classified by their transmission type: diesel–mechanical DMMU, diesel–hydraulic DHMU, or diesel–electric DEMU.
A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car;
A multiple-unit train or simply multiple unit (MU) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined, which when coupled to another multiple unit can be controlled by a single driver, with multiple-unit train control.
A railcar is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach, with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railway companies, such as the Great Western, termed such vehicles "railmotors".
A railbus is a lightweight passenger railcar that shares many aspects of its construction with a bus, typically having a bus body and four wheels on a fixed base instead of on bogies. Originally designed and developed during the 1930s, railbuses have evolved into larger dimensions with characteristics similar in appearance to a light railcar, with the terms railcar and railbus often used interchangeably. Railbuses designed for use specifically on little-used railway lines were commonly employed in countries such as Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, and Sweden.
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages. An EMU is usually formed of two or more semi-permanently coupled carriages, but electrically powered single-unit railcars are also generally classed as EMUs. The great majority of EMUs are passenger trains, but versions also exist for carrying mail.
The Gornergrat Railway is a mountain rack railway, located in the Swiss canton of Valais. It links the resort village of Zermatt, situated at 1,604 m (5,262 ft) above mean sea level, to the summit of the Gornergrat. The Gornergrat railway station is situated at an altitude of 3,089 m (10,135 ft), which makes the Gornergrat Railway the second highest railway in Europe after the Jungfrau, and the highest open-air railway of the continent. The line opened in 1898, and was the first electric rack railway to be built in Switzerland. The Gornergrat is a starting point for many hikes, as it lies surrounded by 29 peaks rising above 4,000 m (13,123 ft) in the Alps and several glaciers, including the Gorner Glacier. At the end of the line on Gornergrat, the Matterhorn is visible on a clear day. It is also a popular skiing area.
The Stadler GTW is an articulated railcar for local transport made by Stadler Rail of Switzerland. GTW stands for Gelenktriebwagen.
The French word Autorail describes a single powered railcar capable of carrying passengers. While the concept faded for a while, it has been introduced with a new range of vehicles for both standard and metre gauge lines.
The Tatra Electric Railway, colloquially Tatra Railway, is an electrified single track 1,000 mm narrow gauge railway in the Slovak part of the Tatra mountains. It consists of two connected lines:
The Štrbské Pleso–Štrba rack railway is a 1,000 mm gauge narrow-gauge railway in the High Tatras. It was built in 1896 and reconstructed in 1970. At the valley terminus, it connects to the standard-gauge main line between Bratislava and Košice, and at the mountain terminus, it connects to the Tatra Electric Railway.
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
The Pioneer III railcar was a short/medium-distance coach designed and built by the Budd Company in 1956 with an emphasis on weight savings. A single prototype was built, but declines in rail passenger traffic resulted in a lack of orders so Budd re-designed the concept as an electric multiple unit (m.u.). Six of the EMU coach design were purchased by the Pennsylvania Railroad with the intention of using them as a high-speed self-contained coach that could be used for long-distance commuter or short-distance intercity travel in the Northeast U.S. The 6 production Pioneer III units were the first all-stainless-steel-bodied EMU railcar built in North America and, at 90,000 pounds (41,000 kg), the lightest.
For more than a century, the Swiss locomotive, multiple unit, motor coach and railcar classification system, in either its original or updated forms, has been used to name and classify the rolling stock operated on the railways of Switzerland. It started out as a uniform system for the classification and naming of all rolling stock, powered and unpowered, but had been replaced and amended by the UIC classification of goods wagons.
The former ČSD Class EMU 29.0, now known as the ZSSK Class 405.95, is a three member class of metre gauge, rack rail, electric multiple unit trains in service on the Štrbské Pleso – Štrba rack railway, in the Prešov Region of northeastern Slovakia.
The Furka Oberalp Bahn Deh 4/4 I, now known as the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn Deh 4/4 51–55, is a five member class of metre gauge, rack rail, electric multiple units operated until 2002 by the Furka Oberalp Bahn (FO), and since then by its successor, the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB), in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland.
The Brig-Visp-Zermatt-Bahn Deh 4/4, now known as the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn Deh 4/4 21–24, is a four member class of metre gauge, rack rail, electric multiple unit power cars operated until 2002 by the Brig-Visp-Zermatt-Bahn (BVZ), and since then by its successor, the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB), in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland.
The Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn ABDeh 4/8, also known as Komet, is a two member class of metre gauge electric trains operated by the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB), in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland.
The Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn ABDeh 4/10, also known as Komet, is a three member class of metre gauge electric trains operated by the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB), in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland.
A multiple-unit train or simply multiple unit (MU) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined together, which when coupled to another multiple unit can be controlled by a single driver, with multiple-unit train control. Although multiple units consist of several carriages, single self-propelled carriages, such as railbuses and trams – are in fact multiple-units when two or more of them are working connected through multiple-unit train control.
