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51-492: Except for this line and a few very short stretches near border crossings, Poland uses standard gauge . The single-track line runs for almost 400 km from the Polish- Ukrainian border crossing, just east of Hrubieszów , to Sławków Południowy (near Katowice ). It is used only for freight, mainly iron ore (more than 50% of the volume of all goods transported), coal, petrochemical products, minerals and timber. It

102-649: A country (for example, 1,440 mm or 4 ft  8 + 11 ⁄ 16  in to 1,445 mm or 4 ft  8 + 7 ⁄ 8  in in France). The first tracks in Austria and in the Netherlands had other gauges ( 1,000 mm or 3 ft  3 + 3 ⁄ 8  in in Austria for the Donau Moldau line and 1,945 mm or 6 ft  4 + 9 ⁄ 16  in in

153-532: A major intermodal terminal, owned and operated by PKP Cargo . It is the westernmost point of the Russian gauge railway network. A new goods station is being built on the site of former passenger stop Zamość Północ, to be named Zamość Majdan. LHS owns a number of M62 (classed ST44) and TEM2 (classed SM48) diesel locomotives, a number of them underwent comprehensive rebuilding to types 311Da (classed ST40s) and 16D (classed ST48), respectively. The company owns

204-434: A new broad-gauge line to ease transit across the border. The latter was chosen, the advantages cited were that the newly-designed line could be built to accommodate the heaviest trains allowed to run on broad gauge network, there would be no need for an unfreezing facility at the border (in winters ore arrived frozen solid, presenting a challenge at the transshipment facility) and PKP needed not to use its own wagons to transport

255-547: A new company within the PKP group, PKP Linia Hutnicza Szerokotorowa, was established to manage the line. On 5 January 2020 the first intermodal container train from China used the line to reach the Sławków terminal, after traveling the 9,477 km (5,889 mi) route from Xi'an via Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine over 12 days. The company operating the line hopes that regular connections with China are established, taking advantage of

306-417: A number of wagons but mostly operates rolling stock by foreign customers (Belarusian, Russian and Ukrainian). No concrete plans whatsoever have been made to build these lines, however they have been suggested in various publications. Standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ). The standard gauge

357-764: A pendulum was attached. A red light in the center of the target illuminated, and with each swing of the target a mechanical gong sounded. The new model, combining sight, motion and sound was dubbed the "Magnetic Flagman" and produced by the Magnetic Signal Company . First developed in concept by the Stanford Research Institute in the late 1950s at the request of the Southern Pacific Company (the Southern Pacific Railroad , now merged into

408-510: A standard gauge of 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,435 mm ), and those in Ireland to a new standard gauge of 5 ft 3 in ( 1,600 mm ). In Great Britain, Stephenson's gauge was chosen on the grounds that existing lines of this gauge were eight times longer than those of the rival 7 ft or 2,134 mm (later 7 ft  1 ⁄ 4  in or 2,140 mm ) gauge adopted principally by

459-654: Is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson ), 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. All high-speed rail lines use standard gauge except those in Russia , Finland , Uzbekistan , and some line sections in Spain . The distance between

510-534: Is also home to a locomotive depot and at Sędziszów LHS there is a wagon depot. There are two sidings: one at Sławków LHS to the iron ore unloading facility, owned and operated by Katowice Steelworks, and another, unused since 1994, at Grzybów to the Siarkopol sulfur mine. In the 1990s there existed also two passenger stations at Zamość Północny and Olkusz. Near the Sławków LHS station there exists Euroterminal Sławków,

561-530: Is connected to the rails of a railroad track, and activates the crossing's warning devices (lights, bells, gates, etc.) at a consistent interval prior to the arrival of a train at a level crossing. Crossbucks also may have legends saying, for example: "RAIL ROAD CROSSING" (United States), "RAIL WAY CROSSING" (Australia and New Zealand), "PELIGRO FERROCARRIL" (Latin America, meaning DANGER RAILWAY), or be wordless (Canada and many other countries). Many states in

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612-766: Is currently operated by the Ghana Railway Company Limited . Kojokrom-Sekondi Railway Line (The Kojokrom-Sekondi line is a branch line that joins the Western Railway Line at Kojokrom ) Indian nationwide rail system ( Indian Railways ) uses 1,676 mm ( 5 ft 6 in ) broad gauge. 96% of the broad gauge network is electrified. The railway tracks of Java and Sumatra use 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ). Planned and under construction high-speed railways to use 1,668 mm ( 5 ft  5 + 21 ⁄ 32  in ) to maintain interoperability with

663-500: Is the westernmost direct connection to the broad-gauge network of the former Soviet Union . The line is designated by the national railway infrastructure manager PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe as line number 65 and operated by a dedicated company PKP Linia Hutnicza Szerokotorowa which serves both as the infrastructure manager and traffic operator. In the 1970s the new giant Katowice Steelworks , then in its most prosperous period, required great quantities of iron ore. The main source

714-608: The Liverpool and Manchester Railway , authorised in 1826 and opened 30 September 1830. The extra half inch was not regarded at first as very significant, and some early trains ran on both gauges daily without compromising safety. The success of this project led to Stephenson and his son Robert being employed to engineer several other larger railway projects. Thus the 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,435 mm ) gauge became widespread and dominant in Britain. Robert

765-497: The Russian invasion on their country , were run on the line to Olkusz, where a tent town has been established to accommodate them before they continue travel by standard gauge rail or by road. The original, 1970s name was Linia Hutniczo-Siarkowa ( Metallurgy-Sulphur Line ), shortened to LHS . Sometime in the 1990s, the name was changed to Linia Hutnicza Szerokotorowa ( Broad Gauge Metallurgy Line ). The new name retained

816-493: The Union Pacific Railroad ), and patented in 1966, the design goal of the level crossing predictor was to provide a consistent warning time for trains approaching a level crossing. Before this invention, the circuits used for activating a crossing's warning devices were very simple, activated whenever a train came within a fixed distance (hundreds or thousands of feet) of the crossing. This method required that

867-527: The 1990s the LHS line was used by long-distance passenger trains to Russia and Ukraine. Initially, it was one pair of fast trains from Moscow to Olkusz , running every other day. In 1993, two pairs of trains Lviv – Zamość North  [ pl ] and Moscow – Zamość North were added. In 1994, passenger trains on the LHS line ran only once a week on the route Kharkiv – Olkusz. Since the mid-90s, passenger trains have run sporadically as special trains. In 2001

918-913: The Great Western Railway. It allowed the broad-gauge companies in Great Britain to continue with their tracks and expand their networks within the "Limits of Deviation" and the exceptions defined in the Act. After an intervening period of mixed-gauge operation (tracks were laid with three rails), the Great Western Railway finally completed the conversion of its network to standard gauge in 1892. In North East England, some early lines in colliery ( coal mining ) areas were 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ), while in Scotland some early lines were 4 ft 6 in ( 1,372 mm ). The British gauges converged starting from 1846 as

969-647: The Netherlands for the Hollandsche IJzeren Spoorweg-Maatschappij ), but for interoperability reasons (the first rail service between Paris and Berlin began in 1849, first Chaix timetable) Germany adopted standard gauges, as did most other European countries. The modern method of measuring rail gauge was agreed in the first Berne rail convention of 1886. Several lines were initially built as standard gauge but were later converted to another gauge for cost or for compatibility reasons. 2,295 km (1,426 mi) Victoria built

1020-718: The US are now requiring the use of this type of equipment at all newly constructed level crossings. " Wigwag " was the nickname given to a type of crossing signals once common in North America, named for the pendulum -like motion it used to signal the approach of a train. Albert Hunt , a mechanical engineer at Southern California 's Pacific Electric (PE) interurban streetcar railroad, invented it in 1909 for safer railroad level crossings. He utilized alternating electromagnets pulling on an iron armature . A red steel target disc, slightly less than two feet in diameter, serving as

1071-645: The advantages of equipment interchange became increasingly apparent. By the 1890s, the entire network was converted to standard gauge. The Royal Commission made no comment about small lines narrower than standard gauge (to be called "narrow gauge"), such as the Ffestiniog Railway . Thus it permitted a future multiplicity of narrow gauges in the UK. It also made no comments about future gauges in British colonies, which allowed various gauges to be adopted across

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1122-483: The coal mines of County Durham . He favoured 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) for wagonways in Northumberland and Durham , and used it on his Killingworth line. The Hetton and Springwell wagonways also used this gauge. Stephenson's Stockton and Darlington railway (S&DR) was built primarily to transport coal from mines near Shildon to the port at Stockton-on-Tees . Opening in 1825,

1173-597: The colonies. Parts of the United States, mainly in the Northeast, adopted the same gauge, because some early trains were purchased from Britain. The American gauges converged, as the advantages of equipment interchange became increasingly apparent. Notably, all the 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ) broad gauge track in the South was converted to "almost standard" gauge 4 ft 9 in ( 1,448 mm ) over

1224-459: The course of two days beginning on 31 May 1886. See Track gauge in the United States . In continental Europe, France and Belgium adopted a 1,500 mm ( 4 ft  11 + 1 ⁄ 16  in ) gauge (measured between the midpoints of each rail's profile ) for their early railways. The gauge between the interior edges of the rails (the measurement adopted from 1844) differed slightly between countries, and even between networks within

1275-409: The crossing be designed to accommodate a train approaching at the track speed limit, which leads to longer warning times for trains approaching the crossing at lower speeds. Very slow trains could have many minutes of warning time, thus delaying highway traffic unnecessarily. All level crossing predictors rely on the changes in the electrical characteristics of the rails that occur as a train approaches

1326-524: The fact that its wide-gauge permits quick crossing of the border between Poland and Ukraine. The company is in the process of installing warning lights (and, in some cases, barriers) at level crossings, extending the Hrubieszów LHS station and upgrading the train control systems. The works are due to be completed by the end of 2025. Since 28 February 2022, special passenger trains carrying refugees from Ukraine, during their highest influx following

1377-740: The first railways to the 5 ft 3 in ( 1,600 mm ) Irish broad gauge. New South Wales then built to the standard gauge, so trains had to stop on the border and passengers transferred, which was only rectified in the 1960s. Queensland still runs on a narrow gauge but there is a standard gauge line from NSW to Brisbane. NMBS/SNCB 3,619 km (2,249 mi) Brussels Metro 40 km (25 mi) Trams in Brussels 140 km (87 mi) 1,032 km (641 mi) The Toronto Transit Commission uses 4 ft  10 + 7 ⁄ 8  in ( 1,495 mm ) gauge on its streetcar and subway lines. Takoradi to Sekondi Route,

1428-623: The goods on the Polish network as the Soviet wagons would be used for the entire transport. A broad gauge line with direct connection to the Soviet railway network also was of strategic importance , allowing Soviet troops to be quickly deployed closer to the Iron Curtain . The new line was designed by CBSiPBK ( Central Bureau for Railway Construction Designs and Studies ) in Warsaw, Józef Skorupski

1479-429: The initial gauge of 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) was set to accommodate the existing gauge of hundreds of horse-drawn chaldron wagons that were already in use on the wagonways in the mines. The railway used this gauge for 15 years before a change was made, debuting around 1850, to the 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ) gauge. The historic Mount Washington Cog Railway ,

1530-534: The inner sides of the rails) to be used. Different railways used different gauges, and where rails of different gauge met – a " gauge break " – loads had to be unloaded from one set of rail cars and reloaded onto another, a time-consuming and expensive process. The result was the adoption throughout a large part of the world of a "standard gauge" of 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ), allowing interconnectivity and interoperability. A popular legend that has circulated since at least 1937 traces

1581-400: The inside edges of the rails is defined to be 1,435 mm except in the United States, Canada, and on some heritage British lines, where it is defined in U.S. customary / Imperial units as exactly "four feet eight and one half inches", which is equivalent to 1,435.1   mm. As railways developed and expanded, one of the key issues was the track gauge (the distance, or width, between

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1632-547: The level crossing at a higher speed than generally allowed. At many crossings, there will be a barrier (or "gate" in the US) added to the signal, which descends over the road and blocks entry. The barriers will be fully lowered 15 to 20 seconds before the train arrives (US), and will rise and the signals will shut off once the end of the train clears the island circuit. Automatic crossings generally have no or half-width barriers to prevent cars and pedestrians from becoming trapped on

1683-422: The majority of countries have automated systems. Automated level crossings are found in most developed nations and vary greatly, but this page in particular is specific to the United States. Such equipment works as follows: The basic signal consists of flashing red lights , a crossbuck and an alarm (either a bell, a speaker that mimics a bell sound or an electronic siren), attached to a mast. At most crossings,

1734-505: The origin of the 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ) gauge even further back than the coalfields of northern England, pointing to the evidence of rutted roads marked by chariot wheels dating from the Roman Empire . Snopes categorised this legend as "false", but commented that it "is perhaps more fairly labeled as 'Partly true, but for trivial and unremarkable reasons. ' " The historical tendency to place

1785-405: The outermost portions of the wheel rims, it became apparent that for vehicles travelling on rails, having main wheel flanges that fit inside the rails is better, thus the minimum distance between the wheels (and, by extension, the inside faces of the rail heads ) was the important one. A standard gauge for horse railways never existed, but rough groupings were used; in the north of England none

1836-424: The point at which the predictor is connected to the rails (the feedpoint). A railroad track occupied by a train or other electrical shunt can be viewed as a single-turn inductor shaped like a hairpin. As the train approaches the feedpoint, the area enclosed by the inductor diminishes, thus reducing the inductance . This inductance can be measured by connecting a constant-current alternating current source to

1887-408: The rails, and measuring the voltage which results. By Ohm's Law , the voltage measured will be proportional to the impedance. The absolute magnitude of this voltage and its rate of change can then be used to compute the amount of time remaining before the train arrives at the crossing, assuming it is running at a constant speed. The crossing's warning devices are activated when the computed time for

1938-411: The rest of the network. All other railways use 1,668 mm ( 5 ft  5 + 21 ⁄ 32  in ) ( broad gauge ) and/or 1,000 mm ( 3 ft  3 + 3 ⁄ 8  in ) metre gauge . BLS , Rigi Railways (rack railway) 449 km Several states in the United States had laws requiring road vehicles to have a consistent gauge to allow them to follow ruts in

1989-408: The road. Those gauges were similar to railway standard gauge. Level crossing signals Level crossing signals are electronic warning devices for road vehicles at railroad level crossings . Level crossings can be operated in various ways. In some countries such as the UK, the warning devices are more often than not activated by remote control, I.e. an operator pressing buttons. However,

2040-469: The signals will activate about 30 seconds before the train arrives but there are sensors measuring speed so that the crossing knows when to activate; so, the slower the train is, the longer the delay and the faster the train is, the earlier the crossing activates. In some countries (such as the Czech Republic or Slovakia ) there is also a flashing white light, which means that it is possible to pass

2091-492: The term "narrow gauge" for gauges less than standard did not arise for many years, until the first such locomotive-hauled passenger railway, the Ffestiniog Railway , was built. In 1845, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , a Royal Commission on Railway Gauges reported in favour of a standard gauge. The subsequent Gauge Act ruled that new passenger-carrying railways in Great Britain should be built to

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2142-434: The tracks with no escape, and manually-operated crossings have full-width barriers (either 2 or 4 arms which block the whole road). However, a number of counties automate fully-closed crossings anyway despite the obvious dangers; however, many such crossings are accompanied by obstacle detection sensors to ensure the tracks are clear. The time interval may be controlled by a level crossing predictor, an electronic device which

2193-411: The train to reach the crossing is equal to the programmed threshold time. The earliest level crossing predictors used analog computers to perform this calculation, but modern equipment uses digital microprocessors . A predictor includes a short "island" track which just covers the width of the level crossing. A predictor circuit in the middle of nowhere is usually terminated with a dead short across

2244-589: The well-established acronym LHS but dropped the Sulphur part, as sulphur is no longer traded between Poland and the East. There are 10 goods stations on the line: Hrubieszów LHS, Zamość Bortatycze LHS, Szczebrzeszyn LHS, Zwierzyniec Towarowy, Biłgoraj LHS, Wola Baranowska LHS, Staszów LHS, Gołuchów LHS, Sędziszów LHS, Sławków LHS. There is a bogie exchange facility at Sędziszów LHS and a SUW 2000 gauge changing facility at Zamość Bortatycze LHS. Zamość Bortatycze LHS

2295-434: The wheels of horse-drawn vehicles around 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ) apart probably derives from the width needed to fit a carthorse in between the shafts. Research, however, has been undertaken to support the hypothesis that "the origin of the standard gauge of the railway might result from an interval of wheel ruts of prehistoric ancient carriages". In addition, while road-travelling vehicles are typically measured from

2346-426: The world's first mountain -climbing rack railway , is still in operation in the 21st century, and has used the earlier 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) gauge since its inauguration in 1868. George Stephenson introduced the 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ) gauge (including a belated extra 1 ⁄ 2  in (13 mm) of free movement to reduce binding on curves ) for

2397-784: Was less than 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ). Wylam colliery's system, built before 1763, was 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ), as was John Blenkinsop 's Middleton Railway ; the old 4 ft ( 1,219 mm ) plateway was relaid to 5 ft ( 1,524 mm ) so that Blenkinsop's engine could be used. Others were 4 ft 4 in ( 1,321 mm ) (in Beamish ) or 4 ft  7 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,410 mm ) (in Bigges Main (in Wallsend ), Kenton , and Coxlodge ). English railway pioneer George Stephenson spent much of his early engineering career working for

2448-589: Was mines near Kryvyi Rih (then in the USSR, now in Ukraine), from where it was transported by rail via Medyka , Przemyśl , and Tarnów to Jaworzno Szczakowa . This line had inadequate capacity to carry the traffic. The Polish State Railways PKP considered two options: to expand existing transshipment facilities at the border (the break of gauge point) and to upgrade existing railway line to three or even four tracks to allow more freight to be carried, or to build

2499-605: Was reported to have said that if he had had a second chance to choose a gauge, he would have chosen one wider than 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,435 mm ). "I would take a few inches more, but a very few". During the " gauge war " with the Great Western Railway , standard gauge was called " narrow gauge ", in contrast to the Great Western's 7 ft  1 ⁄ 4  in ( 2,140 mm ) broad gauge . The modern use of

2550-403: Was the general designer, Twenty-one other design bureaus, eight geological companies and three technical universities took part in the project. The line was built partly alongside existing standard-gauge lines which facilitated the construction works. To save costs, the line was routed through Roztocze National Park despite intensive lobbying by the park management. The line opened in 1979 and

2601-407: Was used to import iron ore from the USSR and export coal and sulphur. After the fall of communism and the economic changes of 1989, traffic greatly diminished. In 1994 export of sulphur stopped. Various schemes are being tried to increase its profitability, such as offering transport and forwarding services to all interested customers, leasing of commercial space and some rolling stock maintenance. In

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