Why only narrow gauge railway is used in hilly areas and not metre gauge or broad gauge?
Answers
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with smaller radius 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 built to serve industries and communities where the traffic potential would not justify the cost of a standard- or broad-gauge line.
Narrow-gauge railways have specialized use in mines and other environments, where a small structure gauge necessitates a small loading gauge. They also have more-general applications. 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, the former Yugoslavia, Greece and Costa Rica. 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 a 3 ft 6 in(1,067 mm) gauge, and Malaysia and Thailandhave metre-gauge railways. Narrow-gauge trams, particularly metre-gauge, are common in Europe.
Answer:
Concept :
A narrow-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard 1,435 mm. Most narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm. and 1,067 mm .
Find:
Why only narrow gauge railway is used in hilly areas and not metre gauge or broad gauge?
Given:
Why only narrow gauge railway is used in hilly areas and not metre gauge or broad gauge?
Explanation:
A narrow-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard 1,435 mm. Most narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm. and 1,067 mm .
(i)Broad gauge is used in most part of the county Xwas mainly installed to connect the major ports with the other cities to facilitate the export of raw material to Britain by ships, Accounting to about 50% of the total route length, broad gauge tracks link the major cities in the country. e.g. Sealdah-Delhi Duranto is the fastest long distance train. It runs nonstop from source to destination. (See Fig. 15.4)
(ii) Metre gauge is mainly used in northern UP, Bihar, Assam and parts of western Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
(iii) Narrow Gauge was used in mountainous regions of Kalka-Shimla, Siliguri - Darjeeling and Ootacamund.
However, after Independence, the government of India decided to convert all the gauges into broad gauge to facilitate transport of goods and general traffic. During the last few decades, efforts have been made to replace most of the metre and narrow gauge tracks by broad gauge, as it is much more convenient and comfortable for the public.
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