Rail freight transport is the use of railways and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers .
82-507: The Bushwick Branch , also called the Bushwick Lead Track , is a freight railroad branch in New York City . It runs from the East Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn to Fresh Pond Junction in the Glendale neighborhood of Queens , where it connects with the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road . It is owned by the LIRR but operated under lease by the New York and Atlantic Railway , which took over LIRR freight operations in May 1997. The Bushwick Branch dates back to
164-448: A goods station (freight station in US). Smaller locomotives transferred the rail cars from the sidings and goods stations to a classification yard , where each car was coupled to one of several long-distance trains being assembled there, depending on that car's destination. When long enough, or based on a schedule, each long-distance train was then dispatched to another classification yard. At
246-488: A broad gauge connection. (A metre-gauge connection between the two broad gauge networks, the Transandine Railway was constructed but is not currently in service. See also Trans-Andean railways . ) Most other countries have few rail systems. The standard gauge in the east, connect with Paraguay and Uruguay. The railways of Africa were mostly started by colonial powers to bring inland resources to port. There
328-447: A direct rail connection. Despite the closure of many minor lines carload shipping from one company to another by rail remains common. Railroads were early users of automatic data processing equipment, starting at the turn of the twentieth century with punched cards and unit record equipment . Many rail systems have turned to computerized scheduling and optimization for trains which has reduced costs and helped add more train traffic to
410-435: A high-frequency shuttle service to and from Jamaica. During the morning rush hour of January 4, 2017, a train overran the bumper block at the end of track 6, injuring 103, none seriously. There were 650 passengers on the train, which had originated from Far Rockaway . The accident occurred at about 8:20 a.m. Two cars of the six-car M7 electric multiple unit train involved were severely damaged when it collided with
492-452: A location, whose origin/destination was a rail terminal yard. This product sometimes arrived at/departed from that yard by means of a through freight. At a minimum, a way freight comprised a locomotive and caboose, to which cars called pickups and setouts were added or dropped off along the route. For convenience, smaller consignments might be carried in the caboose , which prompted some railroads to define their cabooses as way cars, although
574-536: A new line between Hunter's Point and Jamaica in 1861, the main line was relocated there, and the line was abandoned west of East New York , in compliance with Brooklyn's ban on steam railroads. West of East New York, the tracks were taken over by horse car lines. The Brooklyn station designation was replaced by the Flatbush Avenue station on July 2, 1877. That same summer local Atlantic Avenue rapid transit trains began to stop there on August 13. The old depot
656-520: A new, but little-used, connection to the standard-gauge network is available at Zahedan . The four major Eurasian networks link to neighboring countries and to each other at several break of gauge points. Containerization has facilitated greater movement between networks, including a Eurasian Land Bridge . Canada , Mexico and the United States are connected by an extensive, unified standard gauge rail network. The one notable exception
738-673: A port. Rail freight uses many types of goods wagon (UIC) or freight car (US). These include box cars (US) or covered wagons (UIC) for general merchandise, flat cars (US) or flat wagons (UIC) for heavy or bulky loads, well wagons or "low loader" wagons for transporting road vehicles; there are refrigerator vans for transporting food, simple types of open-topped wagons for transporting bulk material, such as minerals and coal , and tankers for transporting liquids and gases. Most coal and aggregates are moved in hopper wagons or gondolas (US) or open wagons (UIC) that can be filled and discharged rapidly, to enable efficient handling of
820-420: A rail line through Central America to South America. Brazil has a large rail network, mostly metre gauge, with some broad gauge. It runs some of the heaviest iron ore trains in the world on its metre gauge network. Argentina have Indian gauge networks in the south, standard gauge in the east and metre gauge networks in the north. The metre gauge networks are connected at one point, but there has never been
902-676: A railway, transporting cargo all or some of the way between the shipper and the intended destination as part of the logistics chain. Trains may haul bulk material , intermodal containers , general freight or specialized freight in purpose-designed cars. Rail freight practices and economics vary by country and region. When considered in terms of ton-miles or tonne-kilometers hauled, energy efficiency can be greater with rail transportation than with other means. Maximum economies are typically realized with bulk commodities (e.g., coal ), especially when hauled over long distances. Moving goods by rail often involves transshipment costs, particularly when
SECTION 10
#1732772332642984-466: A result, three major rail gauges are in use. A standard gauge Trans-Australian Railway spans the continent. In 2011, North American railroads operated 1,471,736 freight cars and 31,875 locomotives, with 215,985 employees, They originated 39.53 million carloads (averaging 63 tons each) and generated $ 81.7 billion in freight revenue. The largest (Class 1) U.S. railroads carried 10.17 million intermodal containers and 1.72 million trailers. Intermodal traffic
1066-506: A road vehicle. Several types of cargo are not suited for containerization or bulk; these are transported in special cars custom designed for the cargo. Less-than-carload freight is any load that does not fill a boxcar or box motor or less than a Boxcar load . Historically in North America, trains might be classified as either way freight or through freight. A way freight generally carried less-than-carload shipments to/from
1148-648: A secondary terminal for the LIRR. In 1876, most of the lines of the ex-Southern, referred to as the old Southern Road division, were immediately rerouted to Long Island City via the Lower Montauk branch; full integration of the old-Southern Road division with the LIRR Main Line would not be achieved until the Jamaica station improvement project of 1912-13. The ex-Southern line between Bushwick and Williamsburg
1230-564: A single track in 1876, but double-tracked again in 1892. In 1877, a station house was built at Bushwick station. Heavy industry in the area saw much use for the line in freight service, while the many industrial jobs in Bushwick warranted passenger commuter service for workers traveling to factories in the area. Nevertheless, the Bushwick Branch became a less and less important terminal, and the increasing prevalence of cars, as well as
1312-639: A town or area, by hopping a freight train is sometimes referred to as "catching-out", as in catching a train out of town. Bulk cargo constitutes the majority of tonnage carried by most freight railroads. Bulk cargo is commodity cargo that is transported unpackaged in large quantities. These cargo are usually dropped or poured, with a spout or shovel bucket, as a liquid or solid, into a railroad car . Liquids, such as petroleum and chemicals, and compressed gases are carried by rail in tank cars . Hopper cars are freight cars used to transport dry bulk commodities such as coal , ore , grain , track ballast , and
1394-438: A viable competitor where water transport is available. Freight trains are sometimes illegally boarded by individuals who do not have the money or the desire to travel legally, a practice referred to as " hopping ". Most hoppers sneak into train yards and stow away in boxcars. Bolder hoppers will catch a train "on the fly", that is, as it is moving, leading to occasional fatalities, some of which go unrecorded. The act of leaving
1476-479: Is connected to the New York City Subway 's Atlantic Avenue–Barclays Center complex, which is served by the 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , B , D , N , Q , R and W trains. Buses serving outside the complex include B41 , B45 , B63 , B65 , B67 , and B103 . The rail terminal
1558-601: Is located in the City Terminal Zone , the LIRR's Zone 1, and thus part of the CityTicket program. The station was originally named Brooklyn in 1852, twenty years after the line was established as the Brooklyn and Jamaica Railroad , and was not originally a terminus. The original terminus was South Ferry , via the now shuttered Cobble Hill Tunnel . When LIRR subsidiary New York and Jamaica Railroad built
1640-551: Is moved by containers stacked on transport ships; 26% of all container transshipment is carried out in China. As of 2005 , some 18 million total containers make over 200 million trips per year. Use of the same basic sizes of containers across the globe has lessened the problems caused by incompatible rail gauge sizes in different countries by making transshipment between different gauge trains easier. While typically containers travel for many hundreds or even thousands kilometers on
1722-406: Is not carried on the train, only the trailer. Piggyback trains are common in the United States, where they are also known as trailer on flat car or TOFC trains, but they have lost market share to containers (COFC), with longer, 53-foot containers frequently used for domestic shipments. There are also roadrailer vehicles, which have two sets of wheels, for use in a train, or as the trailer of
SECTION 20
#17327723326421804-575: Is owned by private companies that also operate freight trains on those tracks. Since the Staggers Rail Act of 1980, the freight rail industry in the U.S. has been largely deregulated. Freight cars are routinely interchanged between carriers, as needed, and are identified by company reporting marks and serial numbers. Most have computer readable automatic equipment identification transponders. With isolated exceptions , freight trains in North America are hauled by diesel locomotives , even on
1886-840: Is still the main use of freight railroads. Greater connectivity opens the rail network to other freight uses including non-export traffic. Rail network connectivity is limited by a number of factors, including geographical barriers, such as oceans and mountains, technical incompatibilities, particularly different track gauges and railway couplers , and political conflicts. The largest rail networks are located in North America and Eurasia. Long distance freight trains are generally longer than passenger trains, with greater length improving efficiency. Maximum length varies widely by system. ( See longest trains for train lengths in different countries.) Many countries are moving to increase speed and volume of rail freight in an attempt to win markets over or to relieve overburdened roads and/or speed up shipping in
1968-515: Is the busiest freight line in the world Such economies of scale drive down operating costs. Some freight trains can be over 7 km long. Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using standard shipping containers (also known as ' ISO containers' or 'isotainers') that can be loaded with cargo, sealed and placed onto container ships , railroad cars , and trucks . Containerization has revolutionized cargo shipping. As of 2009 approximately 90% of non- bulk cargo worldwide
2050-472: Is the isolated Alaska Railroad , which is connected to the main network by rail barge . Due primarily to external factors such as geography and the commodity mix favoring commodities such as coal, the modal share of freight rail in North America is one of the highest worldwide. Rail freight is well standardized in North America, with Janney couplers and compatible air brakes . The main variations are in loading gauge and maximum car weight. Most trackage
2132-800: Is the westernmost commuter rail terminal on the Long Island Rail Road 's (LIRR) Atlantic Branch , located at Flatbush Avenue and Atlantic Avenue in Downtown Brooklyn , New York City . It is the primary terminal for the West Hempstead Branch , and a peak-hour terminal for some trains on the Hempstead Branch , Far Rockaway Branch , and the Babylon Branch ; most other service is provided by frequent shuttles to Jamaica station . The terminal
2214-655: Is used in India for selected freight-only lines. In some countries rolling highway , or rolling road, trains are used; trucks can drive straight onto the train and drive off again when the end destination is reached. A system like this is used on the Channel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France, as well as on the Konkan Railway in India. In other countries, the tractor unit of each truck
2296-574: The Brighton Line on August 1, 1920. The connection to the BMT Fifth Avenue Line was lost on May 31, 1940. The station was refurbished and the exterior was sandblasted in the early 1940s. The decline of rail service after World War II led to the station's gradual demise, however. Track #1 was out of service on April 10, 1959. Former express tracks numbers 9–14 ("EX" Yard) were taken out of service on March 3, 1971. At some point,
2378-572: The South Side Railroad of Long Island . The South Side had been chartered on March 23, 1860 to build a railroad from Jamaica, Queens , all the way to Islip along the south shore of Long Island . The South Side sought to build a line west of Jamaica to the East River so its passengers could connect to ferries that would take them into Manhattan . The South Side originally wanted to build to Long Island City , and tried to buy out
2460-539: The 2010s, most North American Class I railroads have adopted some form of precision railroading . The Guatemala railroad is currently inactive, preventing rail shipment south of Mexico. Panama has freight rail service, recently converted to standard gauge, that parallels the Panama Canal . A few other rail systems in Central America are still in operation, but most have closed. There has never been
2542-660: The East River ferry terminals were along Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn , a route owned by the LIRR, and in Long Island City , a route owned by the Flushing and North Side Railroad (FNSRR). To provide a marine freight terminal, in the summer of 1869, a spur was built to the Newtown Creek at Furman's Island, which today is connected by landfill to the rest of Brooklyn. The LIRR service to Long Island City via
Bushwick Branch - Misplaced Pages Continue
2624-641: The European Union participate in an auto-gauge network. The United Kingdom is linked to this network via the Channel Tunnel . The Marmaray project connects Europe with eastern Turkey, Iran, and the Middle East via a rail tunnel under the Bosphorus . The 57-km Gotthard Base Tunnel improved north–south rail connections when it opened in 2016. Spain and Portugal are mostly broad gauge, though Spain has built some standard gauge lines that connect with
2706-550: The European high-speed passenger network. A variety of electrification and signaling systems is in use, though this is less of an issue for freight; however, clearances prevent double-stack service on most lines. Buffer-and-screw couplings are generally used between freight vehicles, although there are plans to develop an automatic coupler compatible with the Russian SA3. See Railway coupling conversion . The countries of
2788-484: The Fresh Pond Yard and entered the Bushwick Branch. While passing through the unprotected crossings, the engine struck several vehicles, seriously injuring four motorists. The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Railroad Administration investigation into the incident revealed that the engine's air brakes had failed, causing it to break loose and roll away. Parking brakes had not been applied due to
2870-427: The Fresh Pond Yard and the Bushwick Branch. The original Bushwick passenger terminal from the days of passenger trains was demolished only in 2005. Most freight traffic on the line today is garbage collection and transfer from factories in the area. This and the branch's limited use often cause the right of way to be littered with trash. The branch is between 16 feet (4.9 m) and 100 feet (30 m) wide. In addition,
2952-456: The LIRR announced that service from Babylon and Hicksville would go directly to Atlantic Terminal during New York Islanders games at Barclays Center . Passengers previously had to transfer at Jamaica to go to Babylon or Hicksville. Since the opening of Grand Central Madison and the introduction of new schedules in February 2023, most service to Atlantic Terminal has been provided by
3034-732: The LIRR station called the Atlantic Avenue station . The Union Elevated eventually became part of the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit Corporation . Further rebuilding took place again in 1893. Between 1904 and 1906, the Carlton Avenue Freight Yards were replaced by the Vanderbilt Avenue Freight Yards . This was just a portion of a major improvement project that included the complete reconstruction of
3116-655: The South Side, along with other railroads on Long Island such as the Central Railroad of Long Island and the FNSRR, came under control of wealthy local rubber baron Conrad Poppenhusen . The South Side was reorganized as the Southern Railroad of Long Island . By 1876, Poppenhusen also took control of the LIRR. Seeing the LIRR as the most formidable of his newly acquired railroads, he began to consolidate
3198-414: The accident. They determined the probable cause to be the engineer falling asleep due to chronic fatigue. The chronic fatigue was in part attributed to undiagnosed sleep apnea . The LIRR terminal, one floor below the ground level, has three high-level island platforms adjacent to six tracks. Platform A is ten cars long, but the two easternmost cars on Track 1 are not accessible due to a large gap between
3280-483: The age of online shopping . In Japan, trends towards adding rail freight shipping are more due to availability of workers rather than other concerns. Rail freight tonnage as a percent of total moved by country: Rail freight ton-milage as a percent of total moved by country: There are four major interconnecting rail networks on the Eurasian land mass, along with other smaller national networks. Most countries in
3362-795: The branch began running to Bushwick, and on November 4 to the East River at the South Eighth Street station in Williamsburg, where passengers would take a ferry into Manhattan. Due to a law in Brooklyn banning steam locomotives, horses pulled trains from the Bushwick Depot to the East River Ferry Terminal in 1868. Steam dummy engines pulled trains from Bushwick depot to East River Ferry Terminal between 1869 and 1873. The two main railroad routes leading to
Bushwick Branch - Misplaced Pages Continue
3444-518: The branch had become overgrown due to lack of use: a writer for The New York Times in 1993, riding on a Bushwick Branch train with a top speed of 10 miles per hour (16 km/h), said that the train "rocked on the antique, uneven tracks like a ship at sea". The Bushwick Branch has seven active grade crossings (the busiest is Metropolitan Avenue ) along its route as of 2024, all of which are unprotected. This requires flag protection from train crews to safeguard motorists when movements are made through
3526-581: The branch to protect motorists. The MTA made major changes to the Bushwick Branch, replacing wooden crossbucks with flashing lights on overhead gantries at the Metropolitan Avenue crossing and only the crossbucks on a large pole seen at all other crossings on the branch. Also known as Bushwick Avenue. Freight (rail) A freight train , cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons ( International Union of Railways ) hauled by one or more locomotives on
3608-533: The bumper at a speed of 10 to 15 miles per hour (16 to 24 km/h). The incident was compared to a September 2016 train crash at Hoboken Terminal in Hoboken, New Jersey , wherein a train also overran a bumper block. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Federal Railway Administration opened investigations into the accident. On February 6, 2018, the NTSB released their Railroad Safety Brief on
3690-555: The competing roads into the LIRR. The LIRR thus gained the FNSRR tracks to Long Island City, making it the primary route for passengers and freight looking to reach Manhattan. The LIRR Atlantic Avenue line was cut back from South Ferry, Brooklyn , to a terminal at Flatbush Avenue , where passengers could transfer to the Fifth Avenue Elevated (and after 1910 the IRT subway) to reach Manhattan, thereby making Flatbush Avenue
3772-416: The crossing. Originally the crossings had crossing gate protection; however, due to the limited use of the line, they were deemed unnecessary and removed in 1990. The unprotected crossings restrict the trains and light engines to 10 MPH. On March 10, 2004, an LIRR engine, EMD MP15AC #165, undergoing a quick turnaround switching move became uncoupled from two other engines, rolled down a slight incline in
3854-633: The electrified Northeast Corridor . Ongoing freight-oriented development includes upgrading more lines to carry heavier and taller loads, particularly for double-stack service, and building more efficient intermodal terminals and transload facilities for bulk cargo. Many railroads interchange in Chicago, and a number of improvements are underway or proposed to eliminate bottlenecks there. The U.S. Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 mandates eventual conversion to Positive Train Control signaling. In
3936-421: The elements (chiefly rain) such as grain, sugar, and fertilizer. Open cars are used for commodities such as coal, which can get wet and dry out with less harmful effect. Hopper cars have been used by railways worldwide whenever automated cargo handling has been desired. Rotary car dumpers simply invert the car to unload it, and have become the preferred unloading technology, especially in North America; they permit
4018-559: The end of passenger service, limited freight service continues on the line. The Bushwick Branch was downgraded to a secondary freight track, most often referred to as the Bushwick Lead Track, and is accessed via LIRR's Fresh Pond Yard. The branch is mostly single-track with a few passing sidings. In May 1997, all freight traffic on the LIRR was privatized and contracted out to the New York and Atlantic Railway , which leased
4100-498: The expected quick turnaround of the engines. The NTSB and FRA now mandate that air and parking brakes be applied to all engines or trains laying idle, regardless of the length of time that they will be laid up. The report also suggested that the pavement along each of the crossings be repaved to allow both trains and street traffic to move over the crossings more gently. In addition, they recommended that more advanced railroad crossing signs, and eventually crossing gates, be installed along
4182-439: The express buildings became a parking garage. Local businesses were still allowed to utilize the station, such as a barber shop, restaurants, candy stores, a snack bar, a podiatrist's office, a dental office, a beauty school, and even a row of telephone booths. Those businesses were gone by 1978. The tracks that were originally numbered from south to north were renumbered from north to south on July 1, 1978. Despite efforts to repaint
SECTION 50
#17327723326424264-505: The fact of the branch had no direct transit connections into Manhattan, caused the branch's main passenger trade to begin to dwindle. By the early 1900s, LIRR began a series of electrification and grade elimination projects for its routes throughout Brooklyn and Queens. While its Main Line , Montauk Branch , Rockaway Beach Branch , and Atlantic Branch received these improvements, the Bushwick did not. By 1913, steam trains were eliminated along
4346-409: The former Soviet Union , along with Finland and Mongolia , participate in a Russian gauge -compatible network, using SA3 couplers . Major lines are electrified. Russia's Trans-Siberian Railroad connects Europe with Asia, but does not have the clearances needed to carry double-stack containers. Numerous connections are available between Russian-gauge countries with their standard-gauge neighbors in
4428-469: The idea of the first double-stack intermodal car in 1977. SP then designed the first car with ACF Industries that same year. At first it was slow to become an industry standard, then in 1984 American President Lines started working with the SP and that same year, the first all "double stack" train left Los Angeles, California for South Kearny, New Jersey , under the name of "Stacktrain" rail service. Along
4510-467: The interest of the New York and Flushing Railroad , a small competitor to the FNSRR. However, the LIRR, which was also looking for access to Long Island City, beat out the South Side bid for the New York and Flushing and bought it out instead. Thus, the only recourse for the South Side was to build a line from Jamaica to Fresh Pond, Queens , and then southwest into Bushwick. On July 18, 1868, service on
4592-414: The latter ceased, and the public sector took over passenger transportation. Railroads are subject to the network effect : the more points they connect to, the greater the value of the system as a whole. Early railroads were built to bring resources, such as coal, ores and agricultural products from inland locations to ports for export. In many parts of the world, particularly the southern hemisphere, that
4674-462: The like. This type of car is distinguished from a gondola car (US) or open wagon (UIC) in that it has opening doors on the underside or on the sides to discharge its cargo. The development of the hopper car went along with the development of automated handling of such commodities, with automated loading and unloading facilities. There are two main types of hopper car: open and covered; Covered hopper cars are used for cargo that must be protected from
4756-407: The line and replaced with battery-powered electric multiple-unit trains that were also used on the West Hempstead Branch . These trains ran from Bushwick Junction to Bushwick. The last timetable to show this passenger service is from October 1923. Timetables from the era show fewer and fewer trains leaving from Bushwick Terminal. On May 13, 1924, passenger service was completely discontinued. Despite
4838-612: The lobby in the early-1980s, random vandalism plagued the station interior causing water damage that was so severe, the street level depot was closed in 1988, and portions were razed during the 1990s. The MTA approved plans in March 1998 to renovate the Atlantic Avenue–Pacific Street subway station and the adjoining LIRR terminal, as well as build the Atlantic Terminal shopping mall above the station. Work on
4920-517: The materials. Rail transport is very energy-efficient, and much more environmentally friendly than road transport. Compared to road transport whісh employs the uѕе of trucks (lorries) , rail transportation ensures that goods that соuld оtherwіѕе be transported on а number of trucks are transported in а single shipment. Thіѕ saves а lot аѕ fаr аѕ cost connected to the transportation are concerned. Rail freight transport also has very low external costs . Therefore, many governments have been stimulating
5002-817: The next classification yard, cars are resorted . Those that are destined for stations served by that yard are assigned to local trains for delivery. Others are reassembled into trains heading to classification yards closer to their final destination. A single car might be reclassified or switched in several yards before reaching its final destination, a process that made rail freight slow and increased costs. Because, of this, freight rail operators have continually tried to reduce these costs by reducing or eliminating switching in classification yards through techniques such as unit trains and containerization , and in some countries these have completely replaced mixed freight trains. In many countries, railroads have been built to haul one commodity, such as coal or ore, from an inland point to
SECTION 60
#17327723326425084-481: The old New York and Flushing route was not well run and disliked by the public. Most chose the far superior Long Island City service offered by the Flushing and North Side Railroad. The LIRR abandoned its Long Island City service and sold its tracks east of Winfield, Queens , to the FNSRR. The rest of the route west of Winfield to Long Island City remained unused. Seeking an opportunity, the South Side decided to buy up
5166-462: The rails. Freight railroads' relationship with other modes of transportation varies widely. There is almost no interaction with airfreight , close cooperation with ocean-going freight and a mostly competitive relationship with long distance trucking and barge transport. Many businesses ship their products by rail if they are shipped long distance because it can be cheaper to ship in large quantities by rail than by truck; however barge shipping remains
5248-413: The railway, Swiss experience shows that with properly coordinated logistics, it is possible to operate a viable intermodal (truck + rail) cargo transportation system even within a country as small as Switzerland . Most flatcars (flat wagons) cannot carry more than one standard 40-foot (12.2 m) container on top of another because of limited vertical clearance , even though they usually can carry
5330-491: The railway. Many factories did not have direct rail access. This meant that freight had to be shipped through a goods station , sent by train and unloaded at another goods station for onward delivery to another factory. When lorries (trucks) replaced horses it was often economical and faster to make one movement by road. In the United States, particularly in the West and Midwest , towns developed with railway and factories often had
5412-506: The remaining tracks in 1872, and extended service west from Fresh Pond to Maspeth along Newtown Creek and on to Long Island City, thus gaining a new terminal on the East River (this line today is referred to by the LIRR as the Lower Montauk). However, the South Side only used this new line for freight service, due to the competing passenger service offered by FNSRR. Passenger trains still ran through Bushwick to Williamsburg. In 1874,
5494-501: The shipper or receiver lack direct rail access. These costs may exceed that of operating the train itself, a factor that practices such as containerization , trailer-on-flatcar or rolling highway aim to minimize. Traditionally, large shippers built factories and warehouses near rail lines and had a section of track on their property called a siding where goods were loaded onto or unloaded from rail cars. Other shippers had their goods hauled ( drayed ) by wagon or truck to or from
5576-536: The standard-gauge network of North Korea in the east, with the Russian-gauge network of Russia, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan in the north, and with the meter-gauge network of Vietnam in the south. India and Pakistan operate entirely on broad gauge networks. Indo-Pakistani wars and conflicts currently restrict rail traffic between the two countries to two passenger lines. There are also links from India to Bangladesh and Nepal, and from Pakistan to Iran, where
5658-543: The station, and a merchandise terminal for "less than carload freight" added on in 1908. The Interborough Rapid Transit Company built a subway line called the Eastern Parkway Line and a station on Atlantic Avenue , that connected to the station on May 1, 1908. The BMT also built two more subway lines on Pacific Street along the Fourth Avenue Line on June 22, 1915, and Atlantic Avenue along
5740-411: The station. The second depot opened on April 1, 1907, with the depot at street level and the tracks installed underground. The station had a lobby that was larger than most LIRR stations, and contained subway type entrances to the tracks. It also served as a post office building until 1925, and contained a baggage depot, express buildings, some meat houses which were inherited from the previous version of
5822-407: The stations' renovation began in 2000, and work on the shopping mall commenced the next year. On January 5, 2010, a new entry pavilion , designed by di Domenico + Partners, opened, providing improved connections between the LIRR, subways, and buses. In March 2010, the station was renamed Atlantic Terminal after a six-year reconstruction project, during which trains continued to operate. In 2014,
5904-424: The switch of freight from trucks onto trains, because of the environmental benefits that it would bring. Railway transport and inland navigation (also known as 'inland waterway transport' (IWT) or 'inland shipping') are similarly environmentally friendly modes of transportation, and both form major parts of the 2019 European Green Deal . In Europe (particularly Britain), many manufacturing towns developed before
5986-466: The term equally applied to boxcars used for that purpose. Way stops might be industrial sidings, stations/flag stops, settlements, or even individual residences. With the difficulty of maintaining an exact schedule, way freights yielded to scheduled passenger and through trains. They were often mixed trains that served isolated communities. Like passenger service generally, way freights and their smaller consignments became uneconomical. In North America,
6068-608: The train and the platform. Platform B is eight cars long. Platform C is six cars long, but Track 6 only has enough space for four cars to meet the platform as it is adjacent to the northbound local platform of the IRT Eastern Parkway Line . ← [REDACTED] toward Norwood–205th Street late nights ( DeKalb Avenue ) ← [REDACTED] toward Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard late nights ( DeKalb Avenue ) ← [REDACTED] toward Astoria–Ditmars Boulevard (select weekday trips) ( DeKalb Avenue ) Atlantic Terminal
6150-454: The use of simpler, tougher, and more compact (because sloping ends are not required) gondola cars instead of hoppers. The heaviest trains in the world carry bulk traffic such as iron ore and coal . Loads can be 130 tonnes per wagon and tens of thousands of tonnes per train. Daqin Railway transports more than 1 million tonnes of coal to the east sea shore of China every day and in 2009
6232-618: The way the train transferred from the SP to Conrail . It saved shippers money and now accounts for almost 70 percent of intermodal freight transport shipments in the United States, in part due to the generous vertical clearances used by U.S. railroads. These lines are diesel-operated with no overhead wiring . Double stacking is also used in Australia between Adelaide , Parkes , Perth and Darwin . These are diesel-only lines with no overhead wiring. Saudi Arabian Railways use double-stack in its Riyadh - Dammam corridor. Double stacking
6314-425: The weight of two. Carrying half the possible weight is inefficient. However, if the rail line has been built with sufficient vertical clearance, a double-stack car can accept a container and still leave enough clearance for another container on top. Both China and India run electrified double-stack trains with overhead wiring. In the United States, Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) with Malcom McLean came up with
6396-720: The west (throughout Europe) and south (to China, North Korea, and Iran via Turkmenistan). While the USSR had important railway connections to Turkey (from Armenia) and to Iran (from Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan enclave), these have been out of service since the early 1990s, since a number of frozen conflicts in the Caucasus region have forced the closing of the rail connections between Russia and Georgia via Abkhazia, between Armenia and Azerbaijan , and between Armenia and Turkey . China has an extensive standard-gauge network. Its freight trains use Janney couplers . China's railways connect with
6478-721: Was 6.2% of tonnage originated and 12.6% of revenue. The largest commodities were coal, chemicals, farm products, nonmetallic minerals and intermodal. Coal alone was 43.3% of tonnage and 24.7% of revenue. The average haul was 917 miles. Within the U.S. railroads carry 39.9% of freight by ton-mile, followed by trucks (33.4%), oil pipelines (14.3%), barges (12%) and air (0.3%). Railways carried 17.1% of EU freight in terms of tonne-km, compared to road transport (76.4%) and inland waterways (6.5%). Unlike passenger trains, freight trains are rarely named. Some, however, have gained names either officially or unofficially. Flatbush Terminal The Atlantic Terminal (formerly Flatbush Avenue )
6560-539: Was abandoned and cut back to a terminal at Bushwick. By the 1880s, Poppenhusen's successor Austin Corbin had successfully consolidated all the railroads. The Bushwick Branch, much like the Atlantic Branch to Flatbush Avenue, acted as a second terminal for the LIRR; however, it offered no convenient transit connections into other parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan. The line was double-tracked in 1868, then reduced to
6642-528: Was little regard for eventual interconnection. As a result, there are a variety of gauge and coupler standards in use. A 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) gauge network with Janney couplers serves southern Africa. East Africa uses metre gauge . North Africa uses standard gauge , but potential connection to the European standard gauge network is blocked by the Arab–Israeli conflict . Rail developed independently in different parts of Australia and, as
6724-618: Was renovated between July–August 1878, when it began serving the Brooklyn, Flatbush and Coney Island Railroad . It was rebuilt again in June 1880. The headquarters for the Long Island Express Company was installed there in 1882, and gave the station a series of tracks that would later be known as the "EX Yard." In 1888, the Union Elevated Railway built an elevated railway line and station that connected to
#641358