Under the

Whyte notation Whyte notation is a classification method for steam locomotives, and some internal combustion locomotives and electric locomotives, by wheel arrangement. It was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte, and came into use in the early twentieth cen ...

for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-2-2-0 represents the

wheel arrangement In rail transport, a wheel arrangement or wheel configuration is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed under a locomotive. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and c ...

of no

leading wheel The leading wheel or leading axle or pilot wheel of a steam locomotive is an unpowered wheel or axle located in front of the driving wheels. The axle or axles of the leading wheels are normally located on a leading truck. Leading wheels are used ...

s, four powered but uncoupled driving wheels on two axles, and no

trailing wheel On a steam locomotive, a trailing wheel or trailing axle is generally an unpowered wheel or axle ( wheelset) located behind the driving wheels. The axle of the trailing wheels is usually located in a trailing truck. On some large locomotives, ...

s. Some authorities place brackets around the duplicated but uncoupled wheels, creating a notation 0-(2-2)-0.

Usage

The only recorded usage of the arrangement was in four locomotives designed by Patrick Stirling for the Glasgow and South Western Railway in 1855. The design was not successful and the locomotives were withdrawn by 1867. The

Mount Washington Cog Railway The Mount Washington Cog Railway, also known as the Cog, is the world's first mountain-climbing Rack railway, cog railway (rack-and-pinion railway). The railway climbs Mount Washington in New Hampshire, United States. It uses a Rack railway#Mars ...

has 8 0-2-2-0's in existence and only 2 are in working order, 3 are in storage, and the rest are on display.

References

* {{Whyte types 0-2-2-0 Railway locomotives introduced in 1855