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73-459: The Southwold Railway was a narrow gauge railway line between Halesworth and Southwold in the English county of Suffolk . 8  miles 63 + 1 ⁄ 2   chains (14.15 km) long, it was 3 ft ( 914 mm ) narrow gauge . It opened in 1879 and closed in 1929. Intermediate stations were at Wenhaston , Blythburgh and Walberswick . The route closely followed

146-415: A 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,435 mm ) standard gauge siding , where goods were transhipped . In 1908, a passing loop was added at Blythburgh, and train control was managed by having a staff for each section. Many of the trains were mixed goods and passenger workings, with the shunting at intermediate stations adding to the journey time for the passengers. The stock did not have

219-698: A 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) gauge, whereas Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand have metre-gauge railways . Narrow-gauge trams, particularly metre-gauge, are common in Europe. Non-industrial, narrow-gauge mountain railways are (or were) common in the Rocky Mountains of the United States and the Pacific Cordillera of Canada, Mexico, Switzerland, Bulgaria, the former Yugoslavia , Greece, and Costa Rica. A narrow-gauge railway

292-514: A 100 link chain, 22 yards (66 feet) long, called the Gunter's Chain . Other surveyors chains have been used historically. A longer chain of 100 feet (30.5 m), with a hundred 1 foot (305 mm) links, was devised in the UK in the late 18th century by Jesse Ramsden , though it never supplanted Gunter's chain. Surveyors also sometimes used such a device, and called it the engineer's chain . In

365-512: A 20 m chain, and ±8 mm for a 30 m chain. In India, a revenue chain with 16 links and of length 10 m (33 ft) is used in cadastral surveys . Also in North America, a variant of the chain is used in forestry for traverse surveys . This modern chain is a static cord (thin rope) 50 metres long, marked with a small tag at each metre, and also marked in the first metre every decimetre . When working in dense bush,

438-407: A Dutch map of 1607, and in an English book for surveyors of 1610. In 1593 the English mile was redefined by a statute of Queen Elizabeth I as 5,280 feet, to tie in with agricultural practice . In 1620, the polymath Edmund Gunter developed a method of accurately surveying land using a surveyor's chain 66 feet long with 100 links. The 66-foot unit, which was four perches or rods, took on

511-475: A chain (10.1 m). In rural areas the roads were wider, up to 10 chains (201.2 m) where a stock route was required. 5 chains (100.6 m) roads were surveyed as major roads or highways between larger towns, 3 chains (60.4 m) roads between smaller localities, and 2 chains (40.2 m) roads were local roads in farming communities. Roads named Three Chain Road etc. persist today. The "Queen's Chain"

584-491: A circumference of 0.1 chain (diameter ≈ 2.1 ft or 64 cm) are still readily available in Canada and the United States. For a rectangular tract, multiplying the number of turns of a chain wheel for each of two adjacent sides and dividing by 1,000 gives the area in acres. In Canada, road allowances were originally 1 chain wide and are now 20 metres. The unit was also used in mapping the United States along train routes in

657-466: A continuous brake, and although the Board of Trade raised the issue at regular intervals, the railway was always able to point to its clean record for transporting passengers, and somehow managed to avoid having to fit one. In 1906 it was announced that the line would be widened from its present narrow gauge to allow carriages and wagons to come direct through from Halesworth. This was not carried out, and

730-425: A curve with standard-gauge rail ( 1435 mm ) can allow speed up to 145 km/h (90 mph), the same curve with narrow-gauge rail ( 1067mm ) can only allow speed up to 130 km/h (81 mph). In Japan and Queensland, recent permanent-way improvements have allowed trains on 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) gauge tracks to exceed 160 km/h (99 mph). Queensland Rail 's Electric Tilt Train ,

803-455: A design speed of 137 km/h (85 mph). Curve radius is also important for high speeds: narrow-gauge railways allow sharper curves, but these limit a vehicle's safe speed. Many narrow gauges, from 15 in ( 381 mm ) gauge to 4 ft 8 in ( 1,422 mm ) gauge, are in present or former use. They fall into several broad categories: 4 ft 6 in ( 1,372 mm ) track gauge (also known as Scotch gauge)

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876-474: A heavy-duty narrow-gauge line is Brazil's EFVM . 1,000 mm ( 3 ft  3 + 3 ⁄ 8  in ) gauge, it has over-100-pound rail (100 lb/yd or 49.6 kg/m) and a loading gauge almost as large as US non-excess-height lines. The line has a number of 4,000-horsepower (3,000 kW) locomotives and 200-plus-car trains. Narrow gauge's reduced stability means that its trains cannot run at speeds as high as on broader gauges. For example, if

949-503: A mine in Bohemia with a railway of about 2 ft ( 610 mm ) gauge. During the 16th century, railways were primarily restricted to hand-pushed, narrow-gauge lines in mines throughout Europe. In the 17th century, mine railways were extended to provide transportation above ground. These lines were industrial , connecting mines with nearby transportation points (usually canals or other waterways). These railways were usually built to

1022-402: A new branch line. Since railways are linear in topology, the "mileage" or "chainage" is sufficient to identify a place uniquely on any given route. Thus, a given bridge location may be indicated as 112 miles and 63 chains (181.51 km) from the origin. In the case of the photograph, the bridge is near Keynsham , which is that distance from London Paddington station . The indication "MLN" after

1095-762: A number of large 3 ft ( 914 mm ) railroad systems in North America; notable examples include the Denver & Rio Grande and Rio Grande Southern in Colorado; the Texas and St. Louis Railway in Texas, Arkansas and Missouri; and, the South Pacific Coast , White Pass and Yukon Route and West Side Lumber Co of California. 3 ft was also a common track gauge in South America, Ireland and on

1168-586: A range of industrial railways running on 500 mm ( 19 + 3 ⁄ 4  in ) and 400 mm ( 15 + 3 ⁄ 4  in ) tracks, most commonly in restricted environments such as underground mine railways, parks and farms, in France. Several 18 in ( 457 mm ) gauge railways were built in Britain to serve ammunition depots and other military facilities, particularly during World War I . Chain (unit) The chain has been used since

1241-532: A short axe or hatchet is commonly tied to the end of the chain, and thrown through the bush in the direction of the traverse. Another version used extensively in forestry and surveying is the hip-chain : a small box containing a string counter, worn on the hip. The user ties off the spooled string to a stake or tree and the counter tallies distance as the user walks away in a straight line. These instruments are available in both feet and metres . The lyrics of Three Chain Road , by Lee Kernaghan , include

1314-423: A steady increase, with passenger journeys rising to 100,000 by 1900, while 9,000 long tons (10,080 short tons; 9,144 t) of minerals and 6,000 long tons (6,720 short tons; 6,096 t) of parcels were carried. In order to cope with the increase, another locomotive was ordered from Sharp Stewart in 1893. It was of a similar design to the originals, but slightly longer, and with a 2-4-2 wheel arrangement. It carried

1387-584: A surviving van is at the East Anglia Transport Museum . At the former Blythburgh station, the Coal Shed has now been restored and a short section of track has been laid next to a recreated platform along with two sidings. Replica rolling stock and a battery electric 3ft gauge locomotive 'Greenbat' are occasionally operated on open days. Parts of the route from Southwold to Blythburgh are walkable, particularly through woodland known as

1460-528: Is a concept that has long existed in New Zealand, of a strip of public land, usually 20 metres (or one chain in pre-metric measure) wide from the high water mark, that has been set aside for public use along the coast, around many lakes, and along all or part of many rivers. These strips exist in various forms (including road reserves, esplanade reserves, esplanade strips, marginal strips and reserves of various types) but not as extensively and consistently as

1533-491: Is a track gauge of 1,000 mm ( 3 ft  3 + 3 ⁄ 8  in ). It has about 95,000 km (59,000 mi) of track. According to Italian law, track gauges in Italy were defined from the centre of each rail rather than the inside edges of the rails. This gauge, measured 950 mm ( 3 ft  1 + 3 ⁄ 8  in ) between the edges of the rails, is known as Italian metre gauge . There were

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1606-481: Is expected to be completed in 2021. Blythburgh Station site has been recreated by the H&;SNGRS with a replica platform, restored coal shed, with a length of demonstration track & sidings. A 3ft gauge battery electric locomotive pulls short demonstration trains of replica Southwold Railway rolling stock on public open days however due to railway operating regulations they are currently unable to take passengers &

1679-429: Is often assumed. The chain also survives as the length of a cricket pitch , being the distance between the stumps. Civil engineers and surveyors use various instruments including chains to measure distance. Other instruments used for measuring distance include tapes and bands. A steel band is also known as a "band chain". In 1620, the polymath Edmund Gunter developed a method of accurately surveying land using

1752-488: Is one where the distance between the inside edges of the rails is less than 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ). Historically, the term was sometimes used to refer to what are now standard-gauge railways , to distinguish them from broad-gauge railways , but this use no longer applies. The earliest recorded railway appears in Georgius Agricola 's 1556 De re metallica , which shows

1825-600: The Southwold Railway Act 1876 ( 39 & 40 Vict. c. clxxxix) on 24 July 1876, to allow the line to be constructed. The main line was 8  miles 63 + 1 ⁄ 2   chains (14.15 km) long, running from Southwold to Halesworth, and two branches were also authorised. A 0.48-mile (0.77 km) branch at Halesworth linked up with the Blyth Navigation , and there was a link to Blackshore Quay, between Southwold and Walberswick , which

1898-1021: The Isle of Man . 900 mm was a common gauge in Europe. Swedish three-foot-gauge railways ( 891 mm or 2 ft  11 + 3 ⁄ 32  in ) are unique to that country and were once common all over the country. Today the only 891 mm line that remains apart from heritage railways is Roslagsbanan , a commuter line that connects Stockholm to its northeastern suburbs. A few railways and tramways were built to 2 ft 9 in ( 838 mm ) gauge, including Nankai Main Line (later converted to 3 ft 6 in or 1,067 mm ), Ocean Pier Railway at Atlantic City , Seaton Tramway ( converted from 2 ft ) and Waiorongomai Tramway . 800 mm ( 2 ft  7 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ) gauge railways are commonly used for rack railways . Imperial 2 ft 6 in ( 762 mm ) gauge railways were generally constructed in

1971-466: The River Blyth , with Halesworth and Southwold both on the north side, but the longest section, including the intermediate stations, was on the south side. Although the line closed in 1929, its track was still marked and identified on a 1933 Ordnance Survey map. The line was lifted and the equipment was scrapped in 1941 to help with war efforts. Some track can still be found on the harbour branch and

2044-810: The Southwestern United States , the vara chain also called the Texas chain , of 20 varas (16.9164 m , or 55 + 1 ⁄ 2  ft) was used in surveying Spanish and later Mexican land grants, such as the major Fisher–Miller and Paisano Grants in Texas, several similarly large ones in New Mexico , and over 200 smaller ranchos in California . Metric chains, of lengths 5 m, 10 m, 20 m and 30 m, are widely used in India. Tolerances are ±3 mm for 5 m and 10 m chains, ±5 mm for

2117-405: The section (640 acres or 259 hectares), quarter-section (160 acres or 64.7 hectares), and quarter-quarter-section (40 acres or 16.19 hectares). Respectively, these square divisions of land are approximately 80 chains (one mile or 1.6 km), 40 chains (half a mile or 800 m), and 20 chains (a quarter mile or 400 m) on a side. The chain is still used in agriculture: measuring wheels with

2190-537: The 19th century. Railroads in the United States have long since used decimal fractions of a mile. Some subways such as the New York City Subway and the Washington Metro were designed with and continue with a chaining system using the 100-foot engineer's chain . In the United States, the chain is also used as the measure of the rate of spread of wildfires (chains per hour), both in

2263-587: The 500mm gauge tracks of their mine railway ; these locomotives were made by the Deutz Gas Engine Company ( Gasmotorenfabrik Deutz ), now Deutz AG . Another early use of internal combustion was to power a narrow-gauge locomotive was in 1902. F. C. Blake built a 7 hp petrol locomotive for the Richmond Main Sewerage Board sewage plant at Mortlake . This 2 ft 9 in ( 838 mm ) gauge locomotive

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2336-514: The Board of Trade on 19 September 1879, and a celebration lunch was held at the Swan Hotel on 23 September. Torrential rain that night caused significant flooding in Suffolk, and the line near Wenhaston Mill was submerged, but the official opening took place on 24 September, and the first train completed a return journey despite the water. Subsequent trains ran between Southwold and Wenhaston, as

2409-528: The Heronry on the south shore of the Blyth estuary. The original bridge at Southwold was blown up during the war but its pillars now support a footbridge . Southwold has had a harbour since at least Saxon times, but its importance as a port began to decline during the 19th century. In an attempt to reverse the declining fortunes of the town, the corporation promoted it as a holiday resort, where bathing in private

2482-892: The Philippines demonstrate that if track is built to a heavy-duty standard, performance almost as good as a standard-gauge line is possible. Two-hundred-car trains operate on the Sishen–Saldanha railway line in South Africa, and high-speed Tilt Trains run in Queensland. In South Africa and New Zealand, the loading gauge is similar to the restricted British loading gauge; in New Zealand, some British Rail Mark 2 carriages have been rebuilt with new bogies for use by Tranz Scenic (Wellington-Palmerston North service), Tranz Metro (Wellington-Masterton service), and Auckland One Rail (Auckland suburban services). Another example of

2555-463: The United Kingdom, the chain is no longer used for practical survey work. However, it is still used on the railways as a location identifier. When railways were designed, the location of features such as bridges and stations was indicated by a cumulative longitudinal "mileage", using miles and chains, from a zero point at the origin or headquarters of the railway, or the originating junction of

2628-528: The adoption of the imperial system of units in 1824. In India, "metric chains" of exactly 20 metres (65.62 feet) are used, along with fractions thereof. The UK statute chain is 22 yards, which is 66 feet (20.1168 m). This unit is a statute measure in the United Kingdom, defined in the Weights and Measures Act 1985 . One link is a hundredth part of a chain, which is 7.92 inches (20.1168 cm). The surveyor's chain first appears in an illustration in

2701-534: The chain and the link became standard surveyors' units of length and crossed to the colonies. The thirteen states of America were expanding westward and the public land had to be surveyed for a cadastral . In 1784 Thomas Jefferson wrote a report for the Continental Congress proposing the rectangular survey system ; it was adopted with some changes as the Land Ordinance of 1785 on 20 May

2774-722: The chain was mandatory in laying out US townships. A federal law was passed in 1785 (the Public Land Survey Ordinance ) that all official government surveys must be done with a Gunter's (surveyor's) chain. Chains and links are commonly encountered in older metes and bounds legal descriptions. Distances on township plat maps made by the US General Land Office are shown in chains. Under the US Public Land Survey System , parcels of land are often described in terms of

2847-920: The coal industry. Some sugar cane lines in Cuba were 2 ft  3 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 699 mm ). 2 ft ( 610 mm ) gauge railways were generally constructed in the former British colonies. The U.S. had a number of railways of that gauge , including several in the state of Maine such as the Wiscasset, Waterville and Farmington Railway . 1 ft  11 + 3 ⁄ 4  in ( 603 mm ), 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ) and 1 ft  11 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 597 mm ) were used in Europe. Gauges below 1 ft  11 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 597 mm ) were rare. Arthur Percival Heywood developed 15 in ( 381 mm ) gauge estate railways in Britain and Decauville produced

2920-504: The company had agreed provisional contracts with Charles Chambers of Westminster, who would build the line and stations for £30,000, and with the Bristol Wagon & Carriage Works Co, who would supply the locomotives and rolling stock for £4,000. The company suffered upheaval around this time, as Allen, the secretary, resigned due to a conflict of interest, when he found himself representing local landowners in their negotiations with

2993-443: The conservation and appreciation of local wildlife are also central to the plans. The trust hopes to conserve a little piece of this historic and unique railway for current and future generations. To haul trains on the reopened line a replica Sharp Stewart steam locomotive, based on the designs of the locomotives that served the railway, is being built by North Bay Railway Engineering Services . The locomotive will be named "Blyth" and

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3066-546: The early 17th century in England, and was brought by British settlers during the colonial period to other countries around the globe. In the United Kingdom, there were 80 chains to the mile, but until the early nineteenth century the Scottish and Irish customary miles were longer than the statute mile ; consequently a Scots chain was about 74 (imperial) feet, an Irish chain 84 feet. These longer chains became obsolete following

3139-553: The engineering firm of Ransomes & Rapier . Both speakers suggested that a 2 ft 6 in ( 762 mm ) gauge railway would be considerably cheaper to build than a standard gauge one, and the meetings resulted in the formation of the Southwold Railway Company. Colonel Heneage Bagot-Chester was appointed as chairman, the two speakers became engineers, and the secretary was a local solicitor called H R Allen. The company obtained an act of Parliament,

3212-544: The fastest train in Australia and the fastest 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) gauge train in the world, set a record of 210 km/h (130 mph). The speed record for 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) narrow-gauge rail is 245 km/h (152 mph), set in South Africa in 1978. A special 2 ft ( 610 mm ) gauge railcar was built for the Otavi Mining and Railway Company with

3285-459: The flooding worsened. The intermediate stations at Walberswick and Blythburgh were not completed until later. The railway was supplied with three locomotives for the opening, built by Sharp, Stewart and Company . They had a 2-4-0 wheel arrangement, and the design was similar to others that the company had supplied for light passenger work. Sharp Stewart also supplied rolling stock, and accepted debentures in part payment, only receiving one-third of

3358-523: The following year. In the report, the use of the chain as a unit of measurement was mandated, and the chain was defined. The chain is the unit of linear measurement for the survey of the public lands as prescribed by law. All returns of measurement in the rectangular system are made in the true horizontal distance in links, chains, and miles. The only exceptions to this rule are special requirements for measurement in feet in mineral surveys and townsite surveys. Linear Measurement Area Measurement In

3431-527: The former British colonies . 760 mm Bosnian gauge and 750 mm railways are predominantly found in Russia and Eastern Europe. Gauges such as 2 ft 3 in ( 686 mm ), 2 ft 4 in ( 711 mm ) and 2 ft  4 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 724 mm ) were used in parts of the UK, particularly for railways in Wales and the borders, with some industrial use in

3504-494: The land to begin. Contracts were re-negotiated, and construction work began on 3 May 1878. Sleepers were bought from Norway, and arrived by ship at Southwold harbour. The rails came from the Tredegar Iron Co, and also arrived at the harbour. Ransomes & Rapier supplied the signalling and switchgear, and a local blacksmith called Charlie List was responsible for much of the ironwork. The completed works were inspected by

3577-582: The main line railway at Halesworth. The trust submitted a planning application in June 2012 with a view to recreating a new station close to the original station site in Wenhaston. Plans include a new station building based on the design of the original, plus a workshop and visitor centre building. The proposals include the reopening of a 1 ⁄ 2 mile (0.80 km) section of the original railway towards Blythburgh. Lineside walks and picnic facilities, and

3650-549: The mileage is the Engineer's Line Reference describing the route as the Great Western Main Line , which is needed to uniquely determine the bridge, as there may be points at 112 miles 63 chains on other routes. On new railway lines built in the United Kingdom such as High Speed 1 , the position along the alignment is still referred to as "chainage", although the value is now expressed in metres. The use of

3723-477: The name "Southwold" and the number 1, as its predecessor had done. Neither of the two branches specified by the original act of Parliament were built, due to a lack of funds, and the powers were allowed to lapse. At Halesworth, the single platform had a shelter for the passengers, and was connected to the Great Eastern station by a footbridge. There was a raised timber platform between one of the sidings and

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3796-555: The name the chain. By 1675 it was accepted, and Ogilby wrote: ...a Word or two of Dimensurators or Measuring Instruments, whereof the mosts usual has been the Chain, and the common length for English Measures 4 Poles, as answering indifferently to the Englishs Mile and Acre, 10 such Chains in length making a Furlong, and 10 single square Chains an Acre, so that a square Mile contains 640 square Acres...' From Gunter's system ,

3869-598: The next 20 years. The Southwold and Halesworth Tramway obtained the Southwold and Halesworth Tramways Order 1872 within the Tramways Orders Confirmation (No. 3) Act 1872 ( 35 & 36 Vict. c. clvii), with the intention of building a steam tramway between the two towns, using the provisions of the Tramways Act 1870 ( 33 & 34 Vict. c. 78), but they failed to raise sufficient funds, and

3942-618: The predictive National Fire Danger Rating System as well as in after-action reports. The term chain is used by wildland firefighters in day-to-day operations as a unit of distance. In Australia and New Zealand , most building lots in the past were a quarter of an acre, measuring one chain by two and a half chains, and other lots would be multiples or fractions of a chain. The street frontages of many houses in these countries are one chain wide—roads were almost always 1 chain (20.1 m) wide in urban areas, sometimes 1.5 chains (30.2 m) or 2.5 chains (50.3 m). Laneways would be half

4015-474: The previous board except one had been residents of Halesworth. Board meetings moved to Rapier's London office, and he became chairman on 20 December 1877. Bagot-Chester resigned from the company on 29 January 1879, leaving a board that had no real commitment to the service of the community. Rapier worked energetically on the project, and £5,000 borrowed from the English & Foreign Credit Co enabled purchase of

4088-627: The project foundered. Still there were calls for a railway, and in October 1875 two public meetings were held. Mr Charles Easton of Easton Hall chaired one in Halesworth, and the Earl of Stradbroke , who lived at Henham Hall , chaired the other in Southwold. Both were local landowners, and they invited a civil engineer called Arthur C. Pain to speak, together with Richard C. Rapier, who was part of

4161-537: The property without consent of the High Court and an Act of Parliament. The Southwold Railway Society was formed in 1994 to: The Southwold Railway Trust was established in 2006 with the objective of promoting awareness of the heritage of the Southwold Railway, preserving any remaining artefacts and instigating re-instatement of the railway as a local community and public amenity connecting Southwold to

4234-506: The proposal was resurrected again in 1920. The railway closed on 11 April 1929 and the LNER instituted a bus service between Halesworth and Southwold as a replacement. In 1940 Southwold Council recommended to the Minister of Supply that the railway's assets should be confiscated for conversion into munitions. The town clerk was receiver for the Southwold Railway Company, but was unable to sell

4307-479: The railway. He was replaced by T. H. Jellicoe, who was joined on the board by the Mayor of Southwold and R. C. Rapier. Raising finance proved difficult, and when Chambers declined to enter into a proper contract until they were sure that purchase of the land was certain, most of the board resigned on 5 November 1877. Only Rapier and Bagot-Chester remained, to be joined by a new board, who were not local men, whereas all of

4380-400: The rest of the stock were then hired at £150 per year. In 1888, the company was authorised to raise another £10,000 in debentures, which was used to pay the arrears in interest on the existing debentures, and in 1890 enabled them to purchase the stock outright. In the first month of operation, the company applied to the Board of Trade for permission to run the line as a light railway and this

4453-550: The same narrow gauge as the mine railways from which they developed. The world's first steam locomotive , built in 1802 by Richard Trevithick for the Coalbrookdale Company, ran on a 3 ft ( 914 mm ) plateway . The first commercially successful steam locomotive was Matthew Murray 's Salamanca built in 1812 for the 4 ft 1 in ( 1,245 mm ) Middleton Railway in Leeds . Salamanca

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4526-427: The total cost in cash. Construction of the railway had cost £90,000, (equivalent to £11,560,000 in 2023), and the company applied to the Board of Trade for authority to raise more capital in 1880. Income from the operation of the trains did not produce enough surplus to keep paying the debenture interest, and in 1883 Sharp Stewart cancelled their arrangement, repossessing locomotive No. 1. The other two locomotives and

4599-475: The traffic potential would not justify the cost of a standard- or broad-gauge line. Narrow-gauge railways have specialised use in mines and other environments where a small structure gauge necessitates a small loading gauge . In some countries, narrow gauge is the standard: Japan, Indonesia, Taiwan, New Zealand, South Africa, and the Australian states of Queensland , Western Australia and Tasmania have

4672-1185: The train movements are purely for demonstration purposes. Further expansion of the site with increased infrastructure is planned for the future. 52°19′17″N 1°36′03″E  /  52.3215°N 1.6009°E  / 52.3215; 1.6009 Narrow gauge railway A narrow-gauge railway ( narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than 1,435 mm ( 4 ft  8 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ) standard gauge . Most narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm ( 1 ft  11 + 5 ⁄ 8  in ) and 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ). Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves , smaller structure gauges , and lighter rails ; they can be less costly to build, equip, and operate than standard- or broad-gauge railways (particularly in mountainous or difficult terrain). Lower-cost narrow-gauge railways are often used in mountainous terrain, where engineering savings can be substantial. Lower-cost narrow-gauge railways are often built to serve industries as well as sparsely populated communities where

4745-482: The two termini would be about 30 minutes, and trains were limited to 100 passengers. Following a report by C J Wall, a former manager of the Bristol and Exeter Railway , the gauge of 3 ft ( 914 mm ) was chosen. This would make the line somewhat more expensive to build, but it was thought that the increased carrying capacity would offset this. A prospectus was published on 3 November 1877, which mentioned that

4818-565: The world; 19th-century mountain logging operations often used narrow-gauge railways to transport logs from mill to market. Significant sugarcane railways still operate in Cuba, Fiji, Java, the Philippines, and Queensland, and narrow-gauge railway equipment remains in common use for building tunnels. In 1897, a manganese mine in the Lahn valley in Germany was using two benzine -fueled locomotives with single cylinder internal combustion engines on

4891-525: Was adopted by early 19th-century railways, primarily in the Lanarkshire area of Scotland. 4 ft  6 + 1 ⁄ 2  in ( 1,384 mm ) lines were also constructed, and both were eventually converted to standard gauge. 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ) between the inside of the rail heads, its name and classification vary worldwide and it has about 112,000 kilometres (70,000 mi) of track. As its name implies, metre gauge

4964-499: Was also the first rack-and-pinion locomotive. During the 1820s and 1830s, a number of industrial narrow-gauge railways in the United Kingdom used steam locomotives. In 1842, the first narrow-gauge steam locomotive outside the UK was built for the 1,100 mm ( 3 ft  7 + 5 ⁄ 16  in )-gauge Antwerp-Ghent Railway in Belgium. The first use of steam locomotives on a public, passenger-carrying narrow-gauge railway

5037-599: Was available on the wide beaches. They expected the East Suffolk Railway from Ipswich to Great Yarmouth to pass through the town, but it was built further inland, due in part to the underlying geology of the area. Although there was a horse bus service which ran to Darsham station once a day, this was not ideal, and a request was made to the railway company for a branch line to Southwold from Halesworth in 1855. The East Suffolk Railway were not prepared to build one, and several similar schemes were proposed over

5110-501: Was granted on 11 March 1880. A maximum speed of 16 miles per hour (26 km/h) was specified, and it was to be worked by one engine in steam . Operation of the swing bridge was achieved using an Annett's key , which was attached to the staff, which the working engine was required to carry. Passenger traffic for the first ten years was fairly static, at around 76,000 journeys per year, but goods traffic doubled to reach 9,000 long tons (10,080 short tons; 9,144 t). The next ten years saw

5183-560: Was in 1865, when the Ffestiniog Railway introduced passenger service after receiving its first locomotives two years earlier. Many narrow-gauge railways were part of industrial enterprises and served primarily as industrial railways , rather than general carriers. Common uses for these industrial narrow-gauge railways included mining, logging, construction, tunnelling, quarrying, and conveying agricultural products. Extensive narrow-gauge networks were constructed in many parts of

5256-592: Was probably the third petrol-engined locomotive built. Extensive narrow-gauge rail systems served the front-line trenches of both sides in World War I . They were a short-lived military application, and after the war the surplus equipment created a small boom in European narrow-gauge railway building. The heavy-duty 3 ft 6 in ( 1,067 mm ) narrow-gauge railways in Australia (Queensland), New Zealand, South Africa, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and

5329-611: Was to be 0.25 miles (0.40 km) long. The company could raise £40,000 in working capital by issuing £10 shares, and also had powers to borrow a further £13,000 by issuing debentures . The gauge of the railway had to be at least 2 ft 6 in ( 762 mm ), and because the line was covered by the Regulation of Railways Act 1868 , it could use a simple signalling system and light earthworks, providing loads were limited and speeds did not exceed 25 miles per hour (40 km/h). In practice, this meant that journey times between

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