1.
Rail transport
–
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, also known as tracks. It is also referred to as train transport. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles run on a flat surface. Tracks usually consist of rails, installed on ties and ballast, on which the rolling stock, usually fitted with metal wheels. Other variations are possible, such as slab track, where the rails are fastened to a concrete foundation resting on a prepared subsurface. Rolling stock in a transport system generally encounters lower frictional resistance than road vehicles, so passenger. The operation is carried out by a company, providing transport between train stations or freight customer facilities. Power is provided by locomotives which either draw electric power from a railway system or produce their own power. Most tracks are accompanied by a signalling system, Railways are a safe land transport system when compared to other forms of transport. The oldest, man-hauled railways date back to the 6th century BC, with Periander, one of the Seven Sages of Greece, Rail transport blossomed after the British development of the steam locomotive as a viable source of power in the 19th centuries. With steam engines, one could construct mainline railways, which were a key component of the Industrial Revolution, also, railways reduced the costs of shipping, and allowed for fewer lost goods, compared with water transport, which faced occasional sinking of ships. The change from canals to railways allowed for markets in which prices varied very little from city to city. In the 1880s, electrified trains were introduced, and also the first tramways, starting during the 1940s, the non-electrified railways in most countries had their steam locomotives replaced by diesel-electric locomotives, with the process being almost complete by 2000. During the 1960s, electrified high-speed railway systems were introduced in Japan, other forms of guided ground transport outside the traditional railway definitions, such as monorail or maglev, have been tried but have seen limited use. The history of the growth, decline and restoration to use of transport can be divided up into several discrete periods defined by the principal means of motive power used. The earliest evidence of a railway was a 6-kilometre Diolkos wagonway, trucks pushed by slaves ran in grooves in limestone, which provided the track element. The Diolkos operated for over 600 years, Railways began reappearing in Europe after the Dark Ages. The earliest known record of a railway in Europe from this period is a window in the Minster of Freiburg im Breisgau in Germany
2.
St. Louis Southwestern Railway
–
Louis Southwestern, and the International-Great Northern, one-half of the mileage in the Southwest. Construction of the original Tyler Tap Railroad began in the summer of 1875 and they also had a freight station in downtown St. Louis. Union Pacific Railroad now operates the yard, but the engine servicing facilities have been demolished, in 1925 SSW and SSW of Texas reported a total of 1474 million net ton-miles of revenue freight and 75 million passenger-miles, in 1970 it carried 8650 million ton-miles and no passengers. Cotton Belt diesel locomotives from 1959 on were painted in Southern Pacifics bloody nose scheme - dark gray body with a red winged nose. Cotton Belt was painted on the sides and in years the letters SSW were painted on the nose. The merged company retains the name Union Pacific for all railroad operations, many former SSW locomotives are used by Union Pacific today, although few still sport unmodified Cotton Belt paint. Most of the units have been repainted into the UP scheme, while others wear patched SSW paint with a UP shield logo. The Cotton Belt ran passenger trains from St. Louis to Texas and from Memphis to Dallas and Shreveport, Cotton Belts Lone Star operated from Memphis Union Station to Dallas Union Terminal with a connecting section from Lewisville, Arkansas, to Shreveport. The Cotton Belt also operated trains between Mt. Pleasant, Tyler and Waco, and a doodlebug between Tyler and Lufkin. The Cotton Belt began a series of passenger train cutbacks in the early 1950s, the railroad had 25 steam engines and four gas electric motor cars available for passenger service in 1949. By late 1952 nine diesels had replaced the locomotives and motorcars. The Cotton Belt was historically one of the first Class 1 lines in the southwest to discontinue passenger service, the last Cotton Belt passenger train, #8, operated on November 30,1959, from Pine Bluff, Arkansas, to East St. Louis, Illinois. The #819 is a L1 class 4-8-4 Northern and was historically the last new steam locomotive rostered by the Cotton Belt, today the 819 is the centerpiece of the Arkansas Railroad Museum housed inside the Pine Bluff Shops. Louisiana politician Andrew R. Johnson was once an agent for the Cotton Belt Railroad. Cotton Belt Depot Train Museum St. Louis Southwestern Railway of Texas St. Moodys Transportation Manual,1968, Cotton Belt Color Pictorial, Four Ways West Publications,1999, ISBN 1-885614-25-X. Eighty Years of Transportation Progress, A History of the St. Louis Southwestern Railway as published in the October 1957 issue of The Cotton Belt News
3.
Arkansas
–
Arkansas is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Its name is of Siouan derivation from the language of the Osage denoting their related kin, the states diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozark and the Ouachita Mountains, which make up the U. S. Interior Highlands, to the forested land in the south known as the Arkansas Timberlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River. Arkansas is the 29th largest by area and the 33rd most populous of the 50 United States, the capital and most populous city is Little Rock, located in the central portion of the state, a hub for transportation, business, culture, and government. The northwestern corner of the state, such as the Fayetteville–Springdale–Rogers Metropolitan Area and Fort Smith metropolitan area, is a population, education, the largest city in the eastern part of the state is Jonesboro. The largest city in the part of the state is Pine Bluff. The Territory of Arkansas was admitted to the Union as the 25th state on June 15,1836, in 1861 Arkansas withdrew from the United States and joined the Confederate States of America during the Civil War. Upon returning to the Union in 1868, the state would continue to suffer due to its reliance on slavery. White rural interests continued to dominate the politics until the Civil Rights Movement. Arkansas began to diversify its economy following World War II and relies on its service industry, aircraft, poultry, steel, tourism, cotton, and rice. The culture of Arkansas is observable in museums, theaters, novels, television shows, restaurants, wright, and physicist William L. McMillan, who was a pioneer in superconductor research, have all lived in Arkansas. The name Arkansas derives from the root as the name for the state of Kansas. The Kansa tribe of Native Americans are closely associated with the Sioux tribes of the Great Plains, the word Arkansas itself is a French pronunciation of a Quapaw word, akakaze, meaning land of downriver people or the Sioux word akakaze meaning people of the south wind. In 2007, the legislature passed a non-binding resolution declaring the possessive form of the states name to be Arkansass which has been followed increasingly by the state government. Arkansas borders Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, Oklahoma to the west, Missouri to the north, as well as Tennessee, the United States Census Bureau classifies Arkansas as a southern state, sub-categorized among the West South Central States. The state line along the Mississippi River is indeterminate along much of the border with Mississippi due to these changes. Arkansas can generally be split into two halves, the highlands in the northwest half and the lowlands of the southeastern half, the highlands are part of the Southern Interior Highlands, including The Ozarks and the Ouachita Mountains. The southern lowlands include the Gulf Coastal Plain and the Arkansas Delta and this dual split can yield to general regions named northwest, southwest, northeast, southeast, or central Arkansas
4.
Queen Victoria
–
Victoria was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she adopted the title of Empress of India. Victoria was the daughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, both the Duke of Kent and King George III died in 1820, and Victoria was raised under close supervision by her German-born mother Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. She inherited the throne aged 18, after her fathers three brothers had all died, leaving no surviving legitimate children. The United Kingdom was already a constitutional monarchy, in which the sovereign held relatively little direct political power. Privately, Victoria attempted to influence government policy and ministerial appointments, publicly, Victoria married her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, in 1840. Their nine children married into royal and noble families across the continent, tying them together, after Alberts death in 1861, Victoria plunged into deep mourning and avoided public appearances. As a result of her seclusion, republicanism temporarily gained strength and her Golden and Diamond Jubilees were times of public celebration. Her reign of 63 years and seven months is known as the Victorian era and it was a period of industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military change within the United Kingdom, and was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. She was the last British monarch of the House of Hanover and her son and successor, Edward VII, belonged to the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the line of his father. Victorias father was Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, until 1817, Edwards niece, Princess Charlotte of Wales, was the only legitimate grandchild of George III. Her death in 1817 precipitated a crisis that brought pressure on the Duke of Kent. In 1818 he married Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, a widowed German princess with two children—Carl and Feodora —by her first marriage to the Prince of Leiningen and her brother Leopold was Princess Charlottes widower. The Duke and Duchess of Kents only child, Victoria, was born at 4.15 a. m. on 24 May 1819 at Kensington Palace in London. Victoria was christened privately by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Charles Manners-Sutton, on 24 June 1819 in the Cupola Room at Kensington Palace and she was baptised Alexandrina, after one of her godparents, Emperor Alexander I of Russia, and Victoria, after her mother. Additional names proposed by her parents—Georgina, Charlotte, and Augusta—were dropped on the instructions of the Dukes eldest brother, George, the Duke of Clarence and the Duke of Kent married on the same day in 1818, but both of Clarences daughters died as infants. Victorias father died in January 1820, when Victoria was less than a year old, a week later her grandfather died and was succeeded by his eldest son, George IV. The Duke of York died in 1827, when George IV died in 1830, he was succeeded by his next surviving brother, William IV, and Victoria became heir presumptive
5.
London and South Western Railway
–
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. It also had many routes connecting towns in Hampshire and Berkshire, including Portsmouth, in the grouping of railways in 1923 the LSWR became part of the Southern Railway. The London and South Western Railway originated as a renaming of the London and Southampton Railway, the railway was an immediate success, and this encouraged the company to think of extensions, to Windsor, to Gosport and to Salisbury. It made a start but eventually had its own line from Basingstoke to Salisbury and Exeter, continuing by a northerly arc to Plymouth. Coming later than the Great Western to the area, it never achieved the solid prosperity there of its broad gauge neighbour. The Southampton line had extended to Weymouth via Ringwood, and the LSWR consolidated its home area building branches closer to London, and direct lines to Portsmouth. It also became joint owner, with the Midland Railway, of the Somerset and Dorset Railway, responsible for infrastructure, shipping became significant also, with passenger and freight services to the Channel Islands, to Saint-Malo in France, and to the Isle of Wight. In the twentieth century it embarked on a programme of electrifying the suburban routes, eventually this covered the entire suburban area. At the same time they revolutionised express passenger train speeds to Weymouth, electrification of the Portsmouth line was now carried out. However, in 1966 the geographical limits of the British Railways regions was rationalised, the Bournemouth line was electrified in 1967, at first with converted steam coaching stock, later replaced by purpose built stock, the electrification was extended to Weymouth. In recent years the system has remained constant, with increasing train frequency from about 1990 now forming a limitation. The services were transferred to St Pancras International in 2007 and at present the Eurostar terminal is dormant, construction probably started on 6 October 1834 under Francis Giles, but progress was slow. The Parliamentary fight had been bitter, and a combination of resentment, a more immediate opportunity was taken up, of serving Portsmouth by a branch line. Interests friendly to the L&SR promoted a Portsmouth Junction Railway, which would have run from Bishopstoke via Botley, however resentment in Portsmouth—which considered Southampton a rival port—at being given simply as branch and thereby a roundabout route to London, killed the prospects of such a line. Portsmouth people wanted their own line, but in trying to play off the L&SR against the London & Brighton Railway they were unable to secure the committed funds they needed. The L&SR now promoted a line to Gosport, shorter and simpler than the earlier proposal. To soothe feelings in Portsmouth, the L&SR included in its Bill a change of name to the London, construction of the Gosport branch was at first quick and simple under Thomas Brassey. Stations were built at Bishopstoke and Fareham, an extremely elaborate station was built at Gosport, tendered at £10,980, seven times the tender price for Bishopstoke
6.
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway
–
The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a triangle, with London at its apex, practically the whole coastline of Sussex as its base. It was bounded on its side by the London and South Western Railway. It served the inland towns/cities of Chichester, Horsham, East Grinstead and Lewes, at the London end was a complicated suburban and outer-suburban network of lines emanating from London Bridge and Victoria, and shared interests in two cross-London lines. The London and Brighton Railway, created in 1837 and opened in 1841, the Brighton Lewes and Hastings Railway, created in February 1844, opened in June 1846. The Croydon and Epsom Railway, created in July 1844, under construction at the time of amalgamation, at the time of its creation the LB&SCR had around 170 route miles in existence or under construction, consisting of three main routes and a number of branches. The main line to Brighton from London Bridge opened in 1841, the sections between Corbetts Lane and London Bridge and between Croydon and Redhill were shared with the South Eastern Railway. There were two lines under construction at the time of the amalgamation, the Sutton & Mole Valley Lines from Croydon to Epsom. The West Sussex coast line originated with a line from Brighton to Shoreham. This was extended to Chichester by the time of the amalgamation, a connecting spur from the Brighton main line at Keymer Junction near Haywards Heath to the Brighton-Lewes line was under construction at the time of amalgamation. A short line from New Cross to Deptford Wharf, proposed by the L&CR, was approved in July 1846, shortly before amalgamation, a short branch from this line to the nearby Surrey Commercial Docks in Rotherhithe opened in July 1855. The main London terminus was the L&CR station at London Bridge, built by the London and Greenwich Railway in 1836, and exchanged for the original L&CR station in 1842. For the first few years of its existence, LB&SCR trains used the L&GR lines from Corbett’s Lane into London, the LB&SCR inherited from the L&CR running powers to the smaller SER passenger terminus at Bricklayers Arms. Poorly sited for passengers, it closed in 1852 and was converted into a goods station, the LB&SCR owned two stations at Croydon, later East Croydon and West Croydon. The L&CR had been operated by the atmospheric principle between Croydon and Forest Hill, as the first phase of a scheme to use this mode of operation between London and Epsom. However, following a number of problems, the LB&SCR abandoned atmospheric operation in May 1847. This enabled it to build its own lines into London Bridge, the history of the LB&SCR can be studied in five distinct periods. However, the LB&SCR had one important playing card not available to the L&BR – control of the SER main line between New Cross and Croydon, under this agreement the LB&SCR would have free access to London Bridge, Bricklayers Arms station and goods yard, and Hastings
7.
Great Western Railway
–
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England, the Midlands, and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835, Goods wagons were painted red but this was later changed to mid-grey. Great Western trains included long-distance express services such as the Flying Dutchman, the Cornish Riviera Express and it also operated many suburban and rural services, some operated by steam railmotors or autotrains. The company pioneered the use of larger, more economic goods wagons than were usual in Britain and it operated a network of road motor routes, was a part of the Railway Air Services, and owned ships, docks and hotels. The Great Western Railway originated from the desire of Bristol merchants to maintain their city as the port of the country. The company was founded at a meeting in Bristol in 1833 and was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1835. Isambard Kingdom Brunel, then aged twenty-nine, was appointed engineer and this was by far Brunels largest contract to date. Firstly, he chose to use a gauge of 7 ft to allow for the possibility of large wheels outside the bodies of the rolling stock which could give smoother running at high speeds. Secondly, he selected a route, north of the Marlborough Downs and this meant the line was not direct from to London to Bristol. From Reading heading west, the line would curve in a northerly sweep back to Bath, the first 22.5 miles of line, from Paddington station in London to Maidenhead Bridge station, opened on 4 June 1838. When Maidenhead Railway Bridge was ready the line was extended to Twyford on 1 July 1839, the cutting was the scene of a railway disaster two years later when a goods train ran into a landslip, ten passengers who were travelling in open trucks were killed. This accident prompted Parliament to pass the 1844 Railway Regulation Act requiring railway companies to provide carriages for passengers. The next section, from Reading to Steventon crossed the Thames twice, a 7. 25-mile extension took the line to Faringdon Road on 20 July 1840. Meanwhile, work had started at the Bristol end of the line, on 17 December 1840, the line from London reached a temporary terminus at Wootton Bassett Road west of Swindon and 80.25 miles from Paddington. The section from Wootton Bassett Road to Chippenham was opened on 31 May 1841, as was Swindon Junction station where the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway to Cirencester connected. That was an independent line worked by the GWR, as was the Bristol and Exeter Railway, in 1851, the GWR purchased the Kennet and Avon Canal, which was a competing carrier between London, Reading, Bath and Bristol. The GWR was closely involved with the C&GWUR and the B&ER, the South Wales Railway had opened between Chepstow and Swansea in 1850 and became connected to the GWR by Brunels Chepstow Bridge in 1852. It was completed to Neyland in 1856, where a port was established
8.
Gosport
–
Gosport /ˈɡɒspɔːrt/ is a town and borough in the South Hampshire conurbation, on the south coast of Hampshire in southern England. The 2011 Census recorded its population as 82,622 and it is on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite the City of Portsmouth, to which it is linked by the Gosport Ferry. The Rowner area of the peninsula was known to have settled in the Saxon era. Both Rowner and Alverstoke, the coming from the original point where the River Alver entered the Solent at Stokes Bay, were included in the Domesday Book. Settlements in the region date back much earlier. Rowner is recorded as being the earliest settlement of the peninsula with many Mesolithic finds, bronze Age items found during a 1960s construction in HMS Sultan included a hoard of axe heads and torcs. A three-celled dwelling unearthed during construction of the Rowner naval Estate in the 1970s points to a settled landscape, the barracks at Browndown were used in the ITV series, Bad Lads Army. There are several theories of how the borough got its name including from the name of Goseport which is believed to derive from goose. An alternative etymology gorse is not supported by the name for the plant. This, however, is believed by some to be a 19th-century invention, until the last quarter of the 20th century, Gosport was a major naval town associated with the defence and supply infrastructure of Her Majestys Naval Base Portsmouth. Most of the naval and military installations have closed since the Second World War leaving empty sites. As a way forward Museums have opened up and many of its fortifications and installations have been opened to the public as tourism and heritage sites. One of the recent additions is the Diving Museum at No 2 Battery at Stokes Bay which is bidding to become the National Diving Museum for the British Isles. Several sites have also been redeveloped to provide housing, including the New Barracks, forton Barracks was part-demolished and is now St Vincent College. There has also been extensive redevelopment of the area as a marina. In November 1850, two ships of the Turkish Navy, the Mirat-ı Zafer and Sirag-i Bahri Birik, anchored off the Hardway near Gosport. The visit lasted several months and during this some of the members of the crew contracted cholera and were admitted to Haslar Hospital for treatment. In addition, some other sailors died because of training accidents, in total 26 died and were laid to rest in the grounds of Haslar
9.
Windsor, Berkshire
–
Windsor is a historic market town and unparished area in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. It is widely known as the site of Windsor Castle, one of the residences of the British Royal Family. The town is situated 23 miles west of Charing Cross, London,7 miles south east of Maidenhead and it is immediately south of the River Thames, which forms its boundary with its ancient twin town of Eton. Windlesora is first mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the name originates from old English Windles-ore or winch by the riverside. By the late 12th century the settlement at Windelsora was renamed Old Windsor, the early history of the site is unknown, although it was almost certainly settled some years before 1070 when William the Conqueror had a timber motte and bailey castle constructed. The focus of royal interest at that time was not the castle, however, from about the 8th century, high status people started to visit the site occasionally, and possibly this included royalty. From the 11th century the sites link with king Edward the Confessor is documented, after the Conquest of 1066 royal use of the site increased, probably because it offered good access to woodlands and opportunities for hunting – a sport which also practised military skills. Windsor Castle is noted in the Domesday Book under the entry for Clewer, although this might seem strange, it occurred because plans for the castle had changed since 1070, and more land had been acquired in Clewer on which to site a castle town. This plan was not actioned until the early 12th century, King Henry married his second wife at Windsor Castle in 1121, after the White Ship disaster. The settlement at Old Windsor largely transferred to New Windsor during the 12th century,1170, under Henry II, following the civil war of Stephens reign. At about the time, the present upper ward of the castle was rebuilt in stone. It had a merchant guild from the early 13th century and, under patronage, was made the chief town of the county in 1277. Somewhat unusually, this gave no new rights or privileges to Windsor. Windsors position as town of Berkshire was short-lived, however. Wallingford took over this position in the early 14th century, as a self-governing town Windsor enjoyed a number of freedoms unavailable to other towns, including the right to hold its own borough court, the right of membership and some financial independence. The town accounts of the 16th century survive in part, although most of the once substantial borough archive dating back to the 12th century was destroyed, probably in the late 17th century. New Windsor was a significant town in the Middle Ages. Its prosperity came from its association with the royal household
10.
Glenfinnan Viaduct
–
The Glenfinnan Viaduct is a railway viaduct on the West Highland Line in Glenfinnan, Inverness-shire, Scotland. Located at the top of Loch Shiel in the West Highlands of Scotland, the viaduct overlooks the Glenfinnan Monument and this Act did pass in 1896, by which time Lucas & Aird had moved south. New contractors were needed and Robert McAlpine & Sons were taken on with Simpson & Wilson as engineers, Robert McAlpine & Sons was headed by Robert McAlpine, nicknamed Concrete Bob for his innovative use of mass concrete. Concrete was used due to the difficulty of working the hard schist in the area, mcAlpines son Robert, then aged 28, and his nephew William Waddell, took charge of construction, with his younger son Malcolm appointed as assistant. Construction of the extension from Fort William to Mallaig began in January 1897, the Glenfinnan Viaduct, however, was complete enough by October 1898 to be used to transport materials across the valley. It was built at a cost of GB£18,904, a long-established legend attached to the Glenfinnan Viaduct was that a horse had fallen into one of the piers during construction in 1898 or 1899. In 1987, Professor Roland Paxton failed to find evidence of a horse at Glenfinnan using a fisheye camera inserted into boreholes in the two piers large enough to accommodate a horse. In 1997, on the basis of hearsay, he investigated the Loch nan Uamh Viaduct by the same method. Using scanning technology in 2001, the remains of the horse and cart were found at Loch nan Uamh, the viaduct is built from mass concrete, and has 21 semicircular spans of 50 feet. It is the longest concrete bridge in Scotland at 416 yards. The West Highland Line it carries is single track, and the viaduct is 18 feet wide between the parapets, the viaduct is built on a curve of 792 feet. The concrete used in the Glenfinnan Viaduct is mass concrete, which reinforced concrete does not contain any metal reinforcement. It is formed by pouring concrete, typically using fine aggregate, into formwork, resulting in a very strong in compression. The line is used by trains operated by ScotRail between Glasgow Queen Street and Mallaig, usually diesel multiple units. Additionally in the summer the heritage Jacobite steam train operates along the line and it is a popular tourist event in the area, and the viaduct is one of the major attractions of the line. The Glenfinnan Viaduct features on some Scottish banknotes, the 2007 series of notes issued by the Bank of Scotland depicts different bridges in Scotland as examples of Scottish engineering, and the £10 note features the Glenfinnan Viaduct
11.
Wuppertal Suspension Railway
–
The Wuppertal Suspension Railway is a suspension railway in Wuppertal, Germany. Its full name is Electric Elevated Railway Installation, Eugen Langen System and it is the oldest electric elevated railway with hanging cars in the world and is a unique system. Designed by Eugen Langen to sell to the city of Berlin, the Schwebebahn is still in use today as a normal means of local public transport, moving 25 million passengers annually. At one point the railway crosses the A46 motorway, the entire trip takes about 30 minutes. The Wuppertal Suspension Railway operates within the VRR transport association and accepts tickets issued by the VRR companies, the Wuppertal Suspension Railway had a forerunner, in 1824, Henry Robinson Palmer of England presented a railway system which differed from all previous constructions. It was a low single-rail suspension railway on which the carriages were drawn by horses, friedrich Harkort, a Prussian industrial entrepreneur and politician, loved the idea. He saw big advantages for the transportation of coal to the early industrialised region in, Harkort had his own steel mill in Elberfeld, he built a demonstration segment of the Palmer system and set it up in 1826 on the grounds of what is today the Wuppertal tax office. He tried to attract attention to his railway plans. Friedrich Harkort inspected the route with a surveyor and a member of the town council. The plans never went ahead because of protests from the transport branch, in 1887 the cities of Elberfeld and Barmen formed a commission for the construction of an elevated railway or Hochbahn. In 1894 they chose the system of the engineer Eugen Langen of Cologne, in 2003, the Rhine Heritage Office announced the discovery of an original section of the test route of the Wuppertal Suspension Railway. Construction on the actual Wuppertal Suspension Railway began in 1898, overseen by the master builder. On 24 October 1900, Emperor Wilhelm II participated in a trial run. In 1901 the railway came into operation, around 19,200 tonnes of steel were used to produce the supporting frame and the railway stations. The construction cost 16 million gold marks, the railway was closed owing to severe damage during World War II, but reopened as early as 1946. The Wuppertal Suspension Railway nowadays carries approximately 80,000 passengers per weekday through the city, since 1997, the supporting frame has been largely modernised, and many stations have been reconstructed and brought technically up to date. Kluse station, at the theatre in Elberfeld, had destroyed during the Second World War. This too was reconstructed during the modernisation, work was planned to be completed in 2001, however a serious accident took place in 1999 which left five people dead and 47 injured
12.
Suspension railway
–
A suspension railway is a form of elevated monorail where the vehicle is suspended from a fixed track, which is built above street level, over a river or canal, or an existing railway track. The British engineer Henry Robinson Palmer filed a patent application for a horse-drawn suspended single-rail system in 1821, the steelmill owner had the vision of a coal-carrier railway between Wupper Valley and the nearby coal-mining region of Ruhr, which would connect his own factories in Elberfeld and Deilbachtal. Due to protests from mill owners that were not integrated along the line and from the transporting branch, the first suspended railway was opened at Cheshunt on June 25,1825 using Palmers patent. It was actually built to carry bricks, but as an opening stunt it carried passengers, a work, Description of the suspension railway invented by Maxwell Dick, with engravings By Maxwell Dick, published in Irvine, Scotland in 1830, refers to an Aerial tramway/cable car system. It was built out of steel construction and worked well. The design of the rail-frame appears to have influenced Eugen Langen and he was a business partner of Nicolaus Otto, the inventor of the internal-combustion engine, and probably knew the Palmer Railway. In the nearby expanding industrial zone of Wupper Valley, entrepreneurs and governors were looking for an urban transportation system. A cooperation of politicians and businessmen from the Barmen-Elberfeld industrial area around 1890 ordered from the factory of Otto and Langen, now Deutz, the official name was Anlage einer elektrischen Hochbahn, System Eugen Langen Köln or Electrical Elevated Railroad Installation, System Eugen Langen Cologne. The installation and stations were built by three companies, among them the company of Friedrich Harkort, in 1901 the first track of the Wuppertal Schwebebahn opened, in 1903 it was extended to the final length of 13.3 kilometres. This system is still in operation as a means of public transport. Langen also designed the Schwebebahn Dresden, a funicular railway using the same suspended monorail technology. A unique demonstration electrically powered line was built by the Scottish engineer George Bennie near Glasgow. Two propellers delivered 240 horsepower in a short burst for acceleration to the speed of 160 km/h. It was not a monorail as it used an overhead running rail. In 1947, Lucien Chadenson became interested in the Bennie Railplane experimental line, and the Paris Metro Route 11, a test track operated in Chateauneuf, south of Paris from 1958, but attracted no further interest in France. Japan would later adopt the Alweg and Safege monorail systems and build more transit monorails than any country in the world. The Ueno Zoo Monorail is a 0.3 km long suspended monorail operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Bureau of Transportation and it is similar to the Schwebebahn Wuppertal, but has rubber tires rather than steel wheels. The line began operating on December 17,1958, based on the SAFEGE design, the Shonan Monorail opened in 1970 in Kamakura, Japan - part of the Greater Tokyo area
