What is a narrow gauge in South Africa?
What is a narrow gauge in South Africa? It is common for South Africans to consider anything less than 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in, Cape gauge) as a narrow-gauge railway.
What is considered narrow gauge?
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).
Why does Japan use narrow gauge?
Clearly, it is safe to assume that Japan's choice of the 3'6 narrow gauge was based more on the cheaper construction cost than on the demands of topography. Norway gradually replaced its narrow gauge track with standard gauge but Japan did not take this road because of economic and military considerations.
What is the fastest narrow gauge train in the world?
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 a design speed of 137 km/h (85 mph).
What is the difference between Cape gauge and narrow gauge?
Cape gauge is 1067mm wide, because it is narrower than the standard gauge of 1435mm, so it is a kind of “narrow gauge”. It's named Cape Gauge because the former Cape Province of South Africa adopted this gauge in 1873. But the first country to install this gauge was Norway.
Why Spain has different rail gauge?
In fact, it is known as the “Iberian gauge”. This can be traced back to 1844, when a group of technicians stated that, due to the Spanish and Portuguese orography, the width of the inner sides of the tracks had to be increased.
Why does Australia have different rail gauges?
In the 19th century, each of the colonies of Australia adopted their own gauges. The three gauges of the Australian railway network as of 2022. With Federation in 1901 and the removal of trade barriers, the short sightedness of three gauges became apparent.