Dual gauge
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Dual gauge
railroad track Railway track ( and International Union of Railways, UIC terminology) or railroad track (), also known as permanent way () or "P way" ( and English in the Commonwealth of Nations#Indian subcontinent, Indian English), is the structure on a Ra ...
has three or four rails, allowing vehicles of two
track gauge In rail transport, track gauge is the distance between the two rails of a railway track. All vehicles on a rail network must have Wheelset (rail transport), wheelsets that are compatible with the track gauge. Since many different track gauges ...
s to run on it. Signalling and sidings are more expensive to install on dual gauge tracks than on two single gauge tracks. Dual gauge is used when there is not enough room for two single tracks or when tracks of two different gauges meet in marshalling yards or
train station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing suc ...
s.


Background

The rail gauge is the most fundamental specification of a railway. Rail tracks and wheelsets are built within engineering tolerances that allow optimum lateral movement of the wheelsets between the rails. Pairs of rails that become too wide or narrow in gauge will cause derailments, especially if in excess of normal gauge-widening on curves. Given the requirement for gauge to be within very tight limits, when the designed distance between the pair of wheels on a wheelset differs even slightly from that of others on a railway, track must be built to two specific gauges. That is achieved in a variety of ways: most commonly by adding a third rail, more rarely by adding another pair of rails; and rarer still, when three gauges are present, by four rails.


Configurations

Dual-gauge track can consist of three rails, sharing one "common" rail; or four rails, with the rails of the narrower gauge lying between those of the broader gauge. In the three-rail configuration, wear and tear of the common rail is greater than with the two other outer rails. In dual gauge lines, turnouts ( railroad switches) are more complex than in single-gauge track, and trains must be safely signalled on both of the gauges. Track circuits and mechanical interlocking must also operate on both gauges. Multi-gauge track is very often associated with a break-of-gauge station, where rail vehicles or vehicle contents are transferred from one gauge to another. A break of gauge causes delay and increases congestion, especially on single-track lines. Essentially, two trains are required to do what a single train would normally accomplish. When traffic passes mainly in one direction, full wagons taken to the border have to be returned as empties, and a train of empty wagons has to be brought to the break of gauge from the other side to fetch the cargo. Congestion is also caused by unloading and reloading. The problem is worsened when there is a disparity between the capacity of locomotives and vehicles on the two gauges: typically, one broad-gauge trainload needs three narrow-gauge trains to carry.


Three rails

Constructing dual-gauge track with three rails is possible when the two adjacent rails can be separated at the base by at least the space required by rail fastening hardware such as spikes and or rail clips – typically . If the two gauges are closer than that, four rails must be used. Depending on the rail fasteners used and the weight of rails (heavy rails are bigger), the practicable difference between the two gauges is in the range to .


Four rails

In some places, the dimensions of two gauges needing to be collocated are too close to allow a three-rail configuration – for example: * and (common in Africa, a legacy respectively of French/Belgian and British railway practice) * and (common in South America) * and (common where broad-gauge railways of former satellite states of the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
meet European or Chinese standard gauge). In such cases, four rails are needed to provide the dual gauge. Four rails might also be installed because of other engineering or operational factors, even though three rails would suffice: an example is on the Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme (Somme Bay railway), which combines standard and metre gauge – different, well within the parameters for three rails. Four rails are necessary where the centre-line of rail vehicles on both tracks must be closely aligned with the centre-line of the track in tunnels or other constricted locations. Such configurations, when they revert back to standard parallel lines as soon as room is available, are termed " gauntlet track" (US: "gantlet track"). Four rails must be placed identically on either side of the central axis of dual-gauge
turntables A phonograph, later called a gramophone, and since the 1940s a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogue reproduction of sound. The sound vibration Waveform, waveforms are recorded as correspond ...
(and six rails on triple-gauge turntables) so that they match the configuration of the fixed rails leading to and from the turntable, regardless of the direction in which the turntable is facing.


Triple gauge

In rare situations, three different gauges may converge on to a rail yard and triple-gauge track is needed to meet the operational needs of the break-of-gauge station – most commonly where there is insufficient space to do otherwise. Construction and operation of triple-gauge track and its signalling, however, involves immense cost and disruption, and is undertaken when no other alternative is available. The following table shows localities where triple gauge has been necessary.


More than three gauges

Three gauges are the maximum found on operating railway lines and in railway yards, but some rolling stock manufacturers collocate more than three lines in their works, depending on the particular gauges of their customers.


Alternatives

Transfer of freight and passengers between different gauges does not necessarily involve dual-gauge track: there may simply be two tracks that approach either side of a platform without overlapping. In Australia, 13 break-of-gauge stations existed by 1945 as a result of longstanding interstate rivalries: three different gauges had persisted since the 1850s and the five mainland state capitals were not linked by standard gauge until 1995. Huge costs and long delays were imposed by trans-shipment of freight at break-of-gauge stations, whether manually, by gantry crane or by wheelset or bogie exchange. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, breaks of gauge in Australia added immense difficulty to the war effort by needing extra locomotives and rolling stock, and more than 1600 service personnel and a large pool of civilians, at transfer points for an annual average transfer of about 1.8 million tonnes of freight. To cost and inefficiency was added, in the case of passengers, considerable inconvenience. In 1896, at Albury station on the Sydney–Melbourne railway, famed American writer Samuel Clemens (
Mark Twain Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910), known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Fau ...
) had to change trains in the middle of a "biting-cold" night in 1896 and there formed his pungent view of "the paralysis of intellect that gave that idea birth". In some locations, an alternative to building long lengths of dual-gauge track has been to change the wheels on rolling stock, either by dropping and changing wheelsets from four-wheeled vehicles or exchanging bogies (US: trucks) under eight-wheeled vehicles. With this arrangement, a short length of dual-gauge track is only needed within the facility. A benefit is that the contents of fully loaded cars are not disturbed. The scheme was first adopted on the French–Spanish border and in Poland. It introduces delay into transit times compared with dual-gauge operation, but is much quicker than trans-shipping: when introduced in 1962 in Melbourne, Australia, on the route between Sydney and Adelaide, the freight handling time per train dropped from five days to less than two. The process involved disconnecting the brake rigging and
bogie A bogie ( ) (or truck in North American English) comprises two or more Wheelset (rail transport), wheelsets (two Railroad wheel, wheels on an axle), in a frame, attached under a vehicle by a pivot. Bogies take various forms in various modes ...
centre pins have to be disconnected before the vehicle is lifted and new bogies are wheeled underneath. In Europe, a similar principle embodies low-profile, small-wheeled transporter wagons, which carry vehicles built for one gauge on a line with a different gauge. A variant is the rollbock (Rollböcke in German), used under two-axle standard-gauge vehicles: each wheelset is carried on a small four-wheeled narrow-gauge trolley. The entire train is converted in minutes at a slow walking pace, each rollbock being automatically matched to its wheelset from underneath. A further variant is " train on train", in which an entire narrow-gauge train is carried on standard-gauge flatcars on which continuous rail has been fitted. Differences in gauge are also accommodated by gauge-adjustable wheelsets, which were installed under some passenger vehicles on international links between Spain and France, Sweden and Finland, Poland and Lithuania, and Poland and Ukraine. In Spain, change-over facilities are extensive, since although track predominates, and high-speed lines are laid to
standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge 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 ...
, there are many lines with narrower gauges ( metre gauge and others).


Dual-gauge railways by nation

;Australia In Victoria, there are sections of and dual-gauge track between Southern Cross station and West Footscray, Sunshine and Newport, Albion and Jacana, North Geelong and Gheringhap, Maryborough and Dunolly, and in various goods yards and industrial sidings. Until 2008, there was a dual-gauge line between
Wodonga Wodonga (pronounced ; ) is a city on the Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is part of the twin city of Albury-Wodonga and is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Wodonga L ...
and Bandiana. At Albury railway station,
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, a and dual-gauge line was in place until 2011. A dual-gauge line was within Tocumwal railway station until 1988, when the standard gauge component was put out of use. In 1900, in
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
, a three-rail dual-gauge system was proposed in order to avoid a break of gauge. However, designing turnouts was considered to be difficult due to the difference of only between the and the broad gauge. After twenty years, the proposal was abandoned. Much later, the
South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the organisation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Australian Natio ...
successfully adopted dual-gauge turnouts. In
Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
, and of double-track dual-gauge extends for of the main line from East Perth to Northam. Dual-gauge track is also used from the triangle at Woodbridge to Cockburn Junction, then to Kwinana on one branch and North Fremantle on the other. The signalling system detects the gauge of the approaching train and puts the signals to stop if the route is set for the wrong gauge. In
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
, there is a section of and dual-gauge track between the rail freight yards at Acacia Ridge and Park Road station, which is utilised by both passenger and freight trains. Freight trains to the Port of Brisbane utilise the dual gauge Fisherman Islands line that runs parallel to the Cleveland railway line from Park Road to Lindum. Passenger trains use the dual-gauge section of the Beenleigh railway line running parallel to the electric suburban narrow gauge of the Queensland Rail city network over the Merivale Bridge into platforms 2 and 3 at Roma Street Station. This is used by standard gauge interstate New South Wales TrainLink XPT services to
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
. In 2012, a dual-gauge line was installed between Acacia Ridge and Bromelton to serve a new freight hub at Bromelton. The long Inland Railway, under construction in 2022, will have about of dual gauge. ;Bangladesh The
Bangladesh Railway Bangladesh Railway () is the state-owned rail transport agency of Bangladesh. It operates and maintains all railways in the country, and is overseen by the Directorate General of Bangladesh Railway. The Bangladesh Railway is governed by the Mi ...
uses three rails to avoid breaks of gauge between its broad-gauge and metre-gauge lines. The Jamuna Bridge and Padma Bridge, which link the east–west and north–south rail systems respectively, have four-rail dual-gauge tracks. Of the Bangladesh Railway system, about has four-rail dual-gauge. ;Belgium Tram tracks in Brussels once combined lines for inter-urban trams and lines for urban trams in a three-rail layout. In 1991, the interurban trams went out of service and then the network used only standard-gauge track. ;Bulgaria The Sofia tramway uses a mixture of narrow and standard gauge. A section of track between Krasna polyana depot and Pirotska street is dual-gauge shared by route 22 and route 11. ;Cameroon The new port of Kribi may serve 1000mm gauge bauxite traffic as well as 1435mm gauge iron ore traffic. ;Czech Republic In the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
, there is 2 km of dual gauge and track near
Jindřichův Hradec Jindřichův Hradec (; ) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 21,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations, urb ...
. In 1985, its original four rails were converted to three rails. In 2004, in Jindřichův Hradec at a switch where a dual gauge railway bifurcates, a Junák express from
Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...
to
Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...
derailed due to a signalling error. The standard gauge train had been switched on to the narrow gauge track. ;France The Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme in France is dual gauge between Noyelles-sur-Mer and Saint-Valery-sur-Somme. The line has four rails with metre gauge laid within standard gauge. There are some dual-gauge (standard and Iberian) sidings at Cerbère on the Spanish border. ;Germany In the 1970s, the Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen tram lines underwent a gauge conversion from gauge to standard gauge. This was part of an upgrade to the Stuttgart Stadtbahn. In 1981, and dual-gauge track was constructed so that new DT-8 Stadtbahn cars and old trams could share the network. In 2008, a further gauge conversion was completed. The Stuttgart Straßenbahn Museum operates gauge trams on weekends and special occasions. In
Krefeld Krefeld ( , ; ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, its c ...
on Ostwall, tram lines are dual gauge so that standard Rheinbahn U76 Stadtbahn cars and gauge trams may share the lines. At the north end of the route, at the junction with Rheinstraße, the trams reverse. There, the standard gauge line ends, while the metre gauge lines continue. At the Hauptbahnhof, on Oppumer Straße, dual gauge track continues. At the ends of Oppumer Straße, the two tracks diverge. In
Mülheim Mülheim, officially Mülheim an der Ruhr (, ; ; ) and also described as ''"City on the River"'', is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia in western Germany. It is located in the Ruhr Area between Duisburg, Essen, Oberhausen and Ratingen. It is ho ...
there is a similar situation. The Duisburg tram line 901 meets the local line 102. The tram system in Duisburg uses gauge track while the tram route from Witten to Mülheim uses gauge tracks. Two lines share a tunnel section between the Mülheim (Ruhr) Hauptbahnhof and Schloss Broich then diverge at street level. The tram network between Werne to Bad Honnef is large with various operators and gauges. The trams in
Wuppertal Wuppertal (; ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany, with a population of 355,000. Wuppertal is the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and List of cities in Germany by population, 17th-largest in Germany. It ...
used gauge track on eastwest lines and gauge track on northsouth lines. Trams in Duisburg used gauge track on lines south of the Ruhr and gauge tracks on lines north of the Ruhr. The north lines closed in the 1960s and 1970s. Duisburg's three routes were converted to gauge track. ;Ghana Ghana is converting its narrow gauge to standard gauge, and is installing dual-gauge sleepers as an intermediate stage. ;Greece In Greece, the line between
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
and Elefsis (now closed) was dual gauge in order to allow the gauge trains of the
Peloponnese The Peloponnese ( ), Peloponnesus ( ; , ) or Morea (; ) is a peninsula and geographic region in Southern Greece, and the southernmost region of the Balkans. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmus of Corinth land bridg ...
rail network to pass. It also allowed standard gauge trains to reach the Elefsis shipyards. In
Volos Volos (; ) is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about north of Athens and south of Thessaloniki. It is the capital of the Magnesia (regional unit), Magnesia regional unit of the Thessaly Region. Volos ...
, a short section of track between the main station and the harbour used an unusual triple gauge, to accommodate standard gauge trains from Larissa, metre gauge trains from Kalambaka, and the gauge trains of the Pelion railway. ;Indonesia In 1899, in the
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...
, dual gauge track was installed between
Yogyakarta Yogyakarta is the capital city of the Special Region of Yogyakarta in Indonesia, in the south-central part of the island of Java. As the only Indonesian royal city still ruled by Hamengkubuwono, a monarchy, Yogyakarta is regarded as an importan ...
and
Solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''Star Wars Legends'' continuity * Kylo Ren (Ben Solo), a ''Star Wars'' character * Napoleon Solo, fr ...
. The track was owned by the Nederlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschappij, a private company, which in 1867 had built the gauge line. The third rail was installed to allow passengers and goods travelling over the gauge ''Staatsspoorweg'' (state railway) a direct connection. At a later date, the government constructed new tracks to allow greater capacity and higher speeds. In 1940, a third rail was installed between Solo and Gundih on the line to
Semarang Semarang (Javanese script, Javanese: , ''Kutha Semarang'') is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Netherlands, Dutch Dutch East Indies, colonial era, and is still an important regio ...
, allowing gauge trains to travel between Semarang, Solo and Yogyakarta via Gambringan, on the line to Surabaya instead of on the original line via Kedungjati. In 1942 and 1943 in
Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...
, under Japanese military occupation, conversion took place from to on the BrumbungKedungjatiGundih main line and the Kedungjati Ambarawa branch line. Until the 1970s, a short section of dual gauge and line existed in
North Sumatra North Sumatra () is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan on the east coast of the island. It borders Aceh to the northwest, Riau to the sou ...
on a joint line of the Deli Railway and the Atjeh Tram. Some sugar mill railways in
Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...
have dual-gauge sections. ;Ireland Ireland's Ulster Railway underwent a gauge conversion from 1880mm to the new Irish standard of . The Dublin & Drogheda Railway underwent a gauge conversion because the gauges were too close to allow a dual-gauge line. ;Italy The Potenza Avigliano Lucania line in Italy is a dual gauge rail with and tracks. ;Japan In Japan, the national standard is narrow gauge. Dual gauge is used where the
Shinkansen The , colloquially known in English as the bullet train, is a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan. It was initially built to connect distant Japanese regions with Tokyo, the capital, to aid economic growth and development. Beyond lon ...
(bullet train) lines join the main network. For example, part of the
Ōu Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Fukushima Station (Fukushima), Fukushima Station through Akita Station to Aomori Station. Since the opening of the Yamagata Shinkansen on July 1, 1 ...
became part of the Akita Shinkansen and was converted to dual gauge in a limited section. The longest () dual gauge section in Japan is near, and in, the Seikan Tunnel. Sections of the Hakone Tozan Line are among a number of other dual-gauge lines. ;Mexico
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
previously had and dual gauge track. ;Netherlands The first railway lines in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
were constructed with a track gauge of . For the 1939 centennial celebration, an exact replica of the country's first locomotive "De Arend" was built using the original blueprints. Since 1953, the locomotive is housed at the Dutch National Railway Museum, where in recent years, a dual-gauge track has been constructed in the rail yard, allowing for the locomotive to drive back and forth on special occasions. ;Poland In Poland, there is of and dual-gauge track in the
Greater Poland Voivodeship Greater Poland Voivodeship ( ) is a Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship, or province, in west-central Poland. The province is named after the region called Greater Poland (''Wielkopolska'' ). The modern province includes most of this historic re ...
, linking Pleszew with a nearby mainline station. It is served by narrow-gauge passenger trains and standard-gauge freight trains. ;Portugal In Portugal there were sections of dual gauge railways In Douro Line with Corgo Line, between Régua railway station and Corgo bifurcation, over a length of 1,100 m. The Corgo Line is currently closed for operation. In Minho Line between Trofa and Famalicão the meter gauge Guimarães line run inside the 1,668 m iberian gauge in an extension of 10 km. This section has been dismantled in 2004 with the regauging of Guimarães Line and duplication and electrification of the Minho line between Ermesinde and Braga. ;Russia Between 2008 and 2012, a dual-gauge cross-border track was rebuilt between Khasan, Russia, and Rajin, North Korea; its gauges were the Russian and Korean . Similar arrangements exist on the approach to Kaliningrad, where track extends from the Polish border with some sections of dual gauge. ;Spain In Spain, there is of dual gauge in the AVE line from
Zaragoza Zaragoza (), traditionally known in English as Saragossa ( ), is the capital city of the province of Zaragoza and of the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributaries, the ...
to Huesca, usable for both standard-gauge high-speed trains and Spanish network trains. Some dual-gauge sidings are at Port Bou on the French border. In 2009, Adif called for tenders for the installation of a third rail for standard-gauge trains on the between Castellbisbal and the Can Tunis freight terminal in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. ;Sweden The bridges at the borders of
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
and
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
, between Haparanda and Tornio have of dual gauge, and track. At each end of the dual-gauge section are yards with standard and Finnish gauge areas to allow for trans-shipment. Four rails are used because the gauges are close and the bridge structure is wider than normal to allow for the offset from the centreline of each gauge. A Rafil gauge changer is at the Tornio yard. Between Västervik and Jenny, Sweden, there is a and dual-gauge line and dual-gauge track in the Västervik station area. ;Switzerland In Switzerland, dual-gauge track and track exists between
Lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...
and Horw of the Zentralbahn, between Niederbipp and Oberbipp of the Oberaargau-Jura Railways and between
Chur '' Chur (locally) or ; ; ; ; ; ; or ; , and . is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, town of the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of the Grisons and lies in the Alpine Rhine, Grisonian Rhine Valley, where ...
and Domat/Ems of RhB. All three allow narrow-gauge passenger trains and standard-gauge freight trains to operate. A ″non-stop″ scheme (albeit with a pause to change locomotives) on the
Montreux Montreux (, ; ; ) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, Swiss municipality and List of towns in Switzerland, town on the shoreline of Lake Geneva at the foot of the Swiss Alps, Alps. It belongs to the Riviera-Pays-d'Enhaut (district), Riviera-Pays ...
- Interlaken route was inaugurated in December 2022. The former Zollikofen- Worblaufen- Deisswil dual gauge was cut back to Papiermühle when the factory in Deisswil closed. ;Ukraine The railway tracks between the border with
Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
at Solomonovo and the border with
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
at Nevetlenfolu are dual-gauge, and . This is in part due to the Austro-Hungarian heritage of the
Zakarpattia Oblast Zakarpattia Oblast (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпатська область), also referred to as simply Zakarpattia (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian: Закарпаття; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kárpátalja'') or Transcar ...
, but also has military and political importance, as it allows standard-gauge trains to run between Romania and Slovakia by bypassing
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
, otherwise impossible due to the break-of -gauge between the Russian-gauge network of Ukraine and standard-gauge networks of Romania and Slovakia. ;United Kingdom The
Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...
in Britain was originally built to a broad gauge of 2134 mm (7 ft 0 in), subsequently widened to 2140 mm (7 ft 0 in). After a "gauge war", the gauge was converted to . A dual-gauge system was easily installed as the gauges were well separated and the line had wooden sleepers. A short section of broad and standard gauge is at the Great Western Society site at Didcot. The port authority in
Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...
,
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, used a dual-gauge line in a street-level network to transfer freight. Two of the city's stations were on a narrow gauge. The other two city stations were on broad gauge. The Fairbourne Railway in
Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...
,
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, has a section of dual gauge track from Fairbourne station to Car Park crossing installed in the late 2010s to allow visiting gauge trains to run on part of the line, which was converted to gauge in 1986, usually as part of special events. ;United States In Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Railway and Pacific Electric Railway ran on dual gauge track on some
downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...
streets. From 1880 to 1902, the Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (standard gauge) and the Burlington and Northwestern Railway (narrow gauge) shared a dual-gauge mainline from Burlington, Iowa, to Mediapolis, to the north. The early operational years of the State Belt Railroad in
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
featured dual-gauge tracks to accommodate regional railroads of the time, which interchanged via ferry. Until 1941, the Colorado and Southern Railway used both standard-gauge and narrow-gauge tracks, and had a dual-gauge line between
Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
and Golden, Colorado. Until the 1960s, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad's Alamosa–Durango Line from Alamosa, Colorado, to Antonito was dual-gauge ( and ). Previously, in its yard at Mount Union, Pennsylvania, the East Broad Top Railroad and Coal Company used dual-gauge tracks. ;Vietnam In Vietnam, near the border with China, there is and dual-gauge track between
Hanoi Hanoi ( ; ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Vietnam, second-most populous city of Vietnam. The name "Hanoi" translates to "inside the river" (Hanoi is bordered by the Red River (Asia), Red and Black River (Asia), Black Riv ...
and Đồng Đăng. Other smaller dual-gauge sections exist elsewhere in the north-east of the country.


See also

* Glossary of rail transport terms *
History of rail transport The history of rail transport began before the beginning of the common era. It can be divided into several discrete periods defined by the principal means of track material and motive power used. Ancient systems The Post Track, a prehisto ...
*
Rail transport Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
*
Rail transport by country This page provides an index of articles on rail transport by country. International railway organisations * International Union of Railways (UIC) * International Union of Public Transport (UITP) * Association of American Railways (AAR) * O ...
* Tamping machine * Track gauge conversion


Notes


Notes to gallery photos


References


Further reading

* *


External links


Interactive 3D model of dual-gauge track

Jane's World Railways
(hard copy)


Diagram of mixed gauge turnouts
ref>
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dual Gauge de:Gleis#Mehrschienengleise