100-520: I-485/South Boulevard is a light rail station in Charlotte , North Carolina . The elevated island platform is the southern terminus stop along the Lynx Blue Line and includes the second largest park and ride operated by Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). Serving both Carolina Pavilion and Sterling neighborhood in the immediate area, it also serves commuters from Pineville , Ballantyne , and
200-724: A "light rail" vehicle (it is a heavy rail vehicle), and is only included for comparison purposes. Low-floor LRVs have the advantage of a low-floor design, allowing them to load passengers directly from low-rise platforms that can be little more than raised curbs. High-floor light rail systems also exist, featuring larger stations. Historically, the track gauge has had considerable variations, with narrow gauge common in many early systems. However, most light rail systems are now standard gauge . Older standard-gauge vehicles could not negotiate sharp turns as easily as narrow-gauge ones, but modern light rail systems achieve tighter turning radii by using articulated cars . An important advantage of
300-458: A bus, there will be even more capacity when there is a combination of cars and light rail. Table 3 shows an example of peak passenger capacity. The cost of light rail construction varies widely, largely depending on the amount of tunneling and elevated structures required. A survey of North American light rail projects shows that costs of most LRT systems range from $ 15 million to over $ 100 million per mile. Seattle's new light rail system
400-403: A chaotic breakdown inflow and a dramatic drop in speed (a traffic jam ) if they exceed about 2,000 vehicles per hour per lane (each car roughly two seconds behind another). Since most people who drive to work or on business trips do so alone, studies show that the average car occupancy on many roads carrying commuters is only about 1.5 people per car during the high-demand rush hour periods of
500-1102: A common right-of-way (however, Link converted to full separation in 2019). Some systems, such as the AirTrain JFK in New York City, the DLR in London, and Kelana Jaya Line in Kuala Lumpur , have dispensed with the need for an operator. The Vancouver SkyTrain was an early adopter of driverless vehicles, while the Toronto Scarborough rapid transit operated the same trains as Vancouver, but used drivers. In most discussions and comparisons, these specialized systems are generally not considered light rail but as light metro systems. Around Karlsruhe , Kassel , and Saarbrücken in Germany, dual-voltage light rail trains partly use mainline railroad tracks, sharing these tracks with heavy rail trains. In
600-755: A commuter rail system in Johannesburg , operates with Bombardier Electrostar electric multiple units. The concept of multiple unit has entered the horizon of the Chinese since the 6th Speed-up Campaign of China Railway in 2007. With the upgrade of Jinghu Railway , North Jingguang Railway , Jingha Railway and Hukun Railway , and the construction of new Passenger Dedicated Lines (or Passenger Railways) completed, CRH (China Railway High-speed) trains have been put into service, mainly in North and Northeast China, and East China. All these CRH trains are electric multiple units. This
700-416: A light rail train may have three to four cars of much larger capacity in one train under the control of one driver, or no driver at all in fully automated systems, increasing the labor costs of BRT systems compared to LRT systems. BRT systems are also usually less fuel-efficient as they use non-electrified vehicles. The peak passenger capacity per lane per hour depends on which types of vehicles are allowed on
800-435: A live rail. In outer areas, the trams switch to conventional overhead wires . The Bordeaux power system costs about three times as much as a conventional overhead wire system and took 24 months to achieve acceptable levels of reliability, requiring the replacement of all the main cables and power supplies. Operating and maintenance costs of the innovative power system still remain high. However, despite numerous service outages,
900-401: A locomotive-drawn train. This is not so easy for a multiple unit, since individual cars can be attached or detached only in a maintenance facility. This also allows a loco-hauled train to be flexible in terms of number of cars. Cars can be removed or added one by one, but on multiple units two or more units have to be coupled. This is not so flexible. The passenger environment of a multiple unit
1000-528: A locomotive-hauled train, if the number of cars is changed to meet the demand, acceleration and braking performance will also change. This calls for performance calculations to be done taking the heaviest train composition into account. This may sometimes cause some trains in off-peak periods to be overpowered with respect to the required performance. When 2 or more multiple units are coupled, train performance remains almost unchanged. However, in locomotive-hauled train compositions, using more powerful locomotives when
1100-568: A locomotive-hauled train, one crew can serve the train regardless of the number of cars in the train provided limits of individual workload are not exceeded. Likewise, in such instances, buffet cars and other shared passenger facilities may need to be duplicated in each unit, reducing efficiency. Large locomotives can be used instead of small locomotives where more power is needed. Also, different types of passenger cars (such as reclining-seats, compartment cars, couchettes, sleepers, restaurant cars, buffet cars, etc.) can be easily added to or removed from
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#17328699757381200-536: A longer distance. Light rail cars are often coupled into multiple units of two to four cars. Light rail systems may also exhibit attributes of heavy rail systems, including having downtown subways, as in San Francisco and Seattle . Light rail is designed to address a gap in interurban transportation between heavy rail and bus services, carrying high passenger numbers more quickly than local buses and more cheaply than heavy rail. It serves corridors in which heavy rail
1300-631: A more diverse range of design characteristics than LRT, depending on the demand and constraints that exist, and BRT using dedicated lanes can have a theoretical capacity of over 30,000 passengers per hour per direction (for example, the Guangzhou Bus Rapid Transit system operates up to 350 buses per hour per direction). For the effective operation of a bus or BRT system, buses must have priority at traffic lights and have their dedicated lanes, especially as bus frequencies exceed 30 buses per hour per direction. The higher theoretical of BRT relates to
1400-405: A motor or trailer car, it is not necessary for every one to be motorized. Trailer cars can contain supplementary equipment such as air compressors, batteries, etc.; they may also be fitted with a driving cab. In most cases, MU trains can only be driven/controlled from dedicated cab cars. However, in some MU trains, every car is equipped with a driving console, and other controls necessary to operate
1500-407: A result, has many of the operating characteristics of a metro system rather than a light rail system. A capacity of 1,350 passengers per train is more similar to the heavy rail than light rail. Bus rapid transit (BRT) is an alternative to LRT and many planning studies undertake a comparison of each mode when considering appropriate investments in transit corridor development. BRT systems can exhibit
1600-470: A semi-high-speed EMU named Vande Bharat Express , capable of running at 183 km/h (114 mph). And it continues to use diesel and electrical multiple units on its national network. All suburban and rapid transit lines are served by EMUs. Indonesia uses diesel since 1976 and electric MUs since 1925. Most of these MUs were built in Japan. The Manila Railroad Company (MRR) acquired its first multiple units in
1700-444: A single train, then be broken at a junction point into shorter trains for different destinations. As there are multiple engines/motors, the failure of one engine does not prevent the train from continuing its journey. A locomotive-drawn train typically has only one power unit, whose failure will disable the train. However, some locomotive-hauled trains may contain more than one power unit and thus be able to continue at reduced speed after
1800-530: A top speed of 55–71.5 miles per hour (88.51–115.1 km/h) depending on the system, while the trains on the all-underground Montreal Metro can only reach a top speed of 72 kilometres per hour (44.74 mph). LACMTA light rail vehicles have higher top and average speeds than Montreal Metro or New York City Subway trains. Many light rail systems—even fairly old ones—have a combination of both on- and off-road sections. In some countries (especially in Europe), only
1900-527: A train is longer can solve this problem. It may be easier to maintain one locomotive than many self-propelled cars. In the past, it was often safer to locate the train's power systems away from passengers. This was particularly the case for steam locomotives, but still has some relevance for casualties than one with a locomotive (where the heavy locomotive would act as a "crumple zone"). If a locomotive fails, it can be easily replaced with minimal shunting movements. There would be no need for passengers to evacuate
2000-474: A tramway, a light metro, and, in a narrow sense, rapid transit. This is especially common in the United States, where there is not a popularly perceived distinction between these different types of urban rail systems. The development of technology for low-floor and catenary-free trams facilitates the construction of such mixed systems with only short and shallow underground sections below critical intersections as
2100-462: Is a generic international English phrase for types of rail systems using modern streetcars/trams, which means more or less the same thing throughout the English-speaking world . Light rail systems can range from trams runnig in streets along with other traffic, to semi-metro systems having portions of grade separated track. People movers are even "lighter", in terms of capacity. Monorail
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#17328699757382200-565: Is a separate technology that has been more successful in specialized services than in a commuter transit role. The use of the generic term light rail avoids some serious incompatibilities between British and American English . The word tram , for instance, is generally used in the UK and many former British colonies to refer to what is known in North America as a streetcar , but in North America tram can instead refer to an aerial tramway , or, in
2300-602: Is a significant amount of overlap between the technologies; similar rolling stock may be used for either, and it is common to classify streetcars or trams as a subcategory of light rail rather than as a distinct type of transportation. However, some distinctions can be made, though systems may combine elements of both. Low-floor light rail lines tend to follow a reserved right-of-way and with trains receiving priority at intersections, and tend not to operate in mixed traffic, enabling higher operating speeds. Light rail lines tend to have less frequent stops than tramways, and operate over
2400-818: Is an informal word for elektropoezd ( Russian : электропо́езд ), a Soviet or post-Soviet regional (mostly suburban ) electrical multiple unit passenger train . Elektrichkas are widespread in Russia, Ukraine and some other countries of the former Soviet Union. The first elektrichka ride occurred in August 1929 between Moscow and Mytishchi . Swedish railroads have been privatized in steps for about 25 years, and today many different companies operate different types of multiple units. A majority of passenger trains today consists of multiple unit trains of which regional traffic exclusively use them. The Swiss Federal Railways use many multiple units, mainly on regional lines ( S-Bahn ). In
2500-560: Is by far the most expensive in the US, at $ 179 million per mile, since it includes extensive tunneling in poor soil conditions, elevated sections, and stations as deep as 180 feet (55 m) below ground level. This results in costs more typical of subways or rapid transit systems than light rail. At the other end of the scale, four systems (Baltimore, Maryland; Camden, New Jersey; Sacramento, California; and Salt Lake City, Utah) incurred construction costs of less than $ 20 million per mile. Over
2600-426: Is especially important for wheelchair access, as narrower gauges (e.g. metre gauge) can make it challenging or impossible to pass the tram's wheels. Furthermore, standard-gauge rolling stock can be switched between networks either temporarily or permanently, and both newly built and used standard-gauge rolling stock tends to be cheaper to buy, as more companies offer such vehicles. Overhead lines supply electricity to
2700-498: Is expensive. Similarly, the most expensive US highway expansion project was the " Big Dig " in Boston, Massachusetts, which cost $ 200 million per lane mile for a total cost of $ 14.6 billion. A light rail track can carry up to 20,000 people per hour as compared with 2,000–2,200 vehicles per hour for one freeway lane. For example, in Boston and San Francisco, light rail lines carry 9,600 and 13,100 passengers per hour, respectively, in
2800-575: Is hard to distinguish between what is called light rail, and other forms of urban and commuter rail. A system described as a light rail in one city may be considered to be a streetcar or tram system in another. Conversely, some lines that are called "light rail" are very similar to rapid transit ; in recent years, new terms such as light metro have been used to describe these medium-capacity systems. Some "light rail" systems, such as Sprinter , bear little similarity to urban rail, and could alternatively be classified as commuter rail or even inter-city rail. In
2900-549: Is impractical. Light metro systems are essentially hybrids of light rail and rapid transit. Metro trains are larger and faster than light rail trains, with stops being further apart. Many systems have mixed characteristics. Indeed, with proper engineering, a rail line could run along a street, then go underground, and then run along an elevated viaduct. For example, the Los Angeles Metro Rail 's A Line "light rail" has sections that could alternatively be described as
3000-509: Is often noticeably noisier than that of a locomotive-hauled train, due to the presence of underfloor machinery. The same applies to vibration. This is a particular problem with DMUs . Separating the motive power from the payload-carrying cars means that either can be replaced when obsolete without affecting the other. Algeria possesses 17 units of the Coradia El Djazaïr, a multiple unit train produced by Alstom. These units are similar to
3100-480: Is one of the highest capacity ones, having been upgraded in a series of expansions to handle 40,000 passengers per hour per direction, and having carried as many as 582,989 passengers in a single day on its Line 1 . It achieves this volume by running four-car trains with a capacity of up to 1,350 passengers each at a frequency of up to 30 trains per hour. However, the Manila light rail system has full grade separation and as
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3200-407: Is similar to that of a traditional tram, while operating at a higher capacity and speed, often on an exclusive right-of-way. In broader use, it includes tram-like operations mostly on streets. A few light rail networks have characteristics closer to rapid transit or even commuter rail , yet only when these systems are fully grade-separated are they referred to as light metros . The term light rail
3300-535: The Cádiz TramBahia , where trams share track with commuter and long-distance trains from the main terminus in the city and curve off to serve cities without a railway connection. Some of the issues involved in such schemes are: There is a history of what would now be considered light rail vehicles operating on heavy rail rapid transit tracks in the US, especially in the case of interurban streetcars . Notable examples are Lehigh Valley Transit trains running on
3400-513: The LRT Line 1 built by La Brugeoise et Nivelles in Belgium . The first EMUs to be used outside of rapid transit will enter service between 2021 and 2022. Most trains in North America are locomotive-hauled and use Multiple Unit (MU) control to control multiple locomotives. The control system of the leading locomotive connects to the other locomotives so that the engineer's control is repeated on all
3500-735: The London Underground and the New York City Subway . Conventional rail technologies including high-speed , freight, commuter , and rapid transit urban transit systems are considered "heavy rail". The main difference between light rail and heavy rail rapid transit is the ability for a light rail vehicle to operate in mixed traffic if the routing requires it. The world's first electric tram operated in Sestroretsk near Saint Petersburg , Russia , invented and operated on an experimental basis by Fyodor Pirotsky in 1880. The first tramway
3600-624: The Netherlands , this concept was first applied on the RijnGouweLijn . This allows commuters to ride directly into the city center, rather than taking a mainline train only as far as a central station and then having to change to a tram. In France, similar tram-trains are planned for Paris, Mulhouse , and Strasbourg ; further projects exist. In some cases, tram trains use previously abandoned or lightly used heavy rail lines in addition to or instead of still in use mainline tracks. In 2022, Spain opened
3700-831: The O-Train Trillium Line in Ottawa, Ontario , Canada, the River Line in New Jersey , United States, and the Sprinter in California , United States, which use diesel multiple unit (DMU) cars. Light rail is different from the British English term light railway , long-used to distinguish railway operations carried out under a less rigorous set of regulations using lighter equipment at lower speeds from mainline railways. Light rail
3800-673: The Philadelphia and Western Railroad high-speed third rail line (now the Norristown High-Speed Line ). Such arrangements are almost impossible now, due to the Federal Railroad Administration refusing (for crash safety reasons) to allow non-FRA compliant railcars (i.e., subway and light rail vehicles) to run on the same tracks at the same times as compliant railcars, which includes locomotives and standard railroad passenger and freight equipment. Notable exceptions in
3900-535: The South Carolina border towns. The station is located on an embankment with Norfolk Southern tracks, which goes over a road that connects the parking garage to Carolina Pavilion Drive and South Boulevard intersection. Adjacent and on top of the parking garage is Sterling Elementary School, while across South Boulevard is the Carolina Pavilion strip mall and access to Little Sugar Creek Greenway. South of
4000-605: The South Side Elevated Railroad (now part of the Chicago 'L' ) in 1897. In 1895, derived from his company's invention and production of direct-current elevator control systems, Frank Sprague invented a multiple-unit controller for electric train operation. This accelerated the construction of electric-traction railways and trolley systems worldwide. Each car of the train has its own traction motors: by means of motor control relays in each car energized by train-line wires from
4100-530: The medians of roads . If run in streets , trains are usually limited by city block lengths to about four 180-passenger vehicles (720 passengers). Operating on two-minute headways using traffic signal progression, a well-designed two-track system can handle up to 30 trains per hour per track, achieving peak rates of over 20,000 passengers per hour in each direction. More advanced systems with separate rights-of-way using moving block signaling can exceed 25,000 passengers per hour per track. Most light rail systems in
I-485/South Boulevard station - Misplaced Pages Continue
4200-821: The 1930s. The locally-built MC class was initially powered by gasoline and was changed to diesel during World War II . Both the MRR and its successor, the Philippine National Railways (PNR), has since acquired various classes of diesel multiple units. All multiple units owned by MRR and all of the older MUs of the PNR were built by Japanese firms. On the other hand, its newer rolling stock were built in South Korea and Indonesia . There will also be DMUs that will be built in China . The first electric multiple units were acquired in 1984 for
4300-528: The 1950s, but by utilizing and enhancing the technology of short-distance urban MU trains, long-distance express MU-type vehicles were developed and widely introduced starting in the mid-1950s. This work resulted in the original Shinkansen development which optimized all of the EMU's efficiencies to maximize speed. It was introduced upon completion of the Tokaido Shinkansen (literally "new trunk line") in 1964. By
4400-619: The 1970s was proven to have been a technical failure by the following decade. After World War II, the Germans retained many of their streetcar networks and evolved them into model light rail systems ( Stadtbahnen ). With the exception of Hamburg , all large and most medium-sized German cities maintain light rail networks. The concept of a "limited tramway" was proposed by American transport planner H. Dean Quinby in 1962. Quinby distinguished this new concept in rail transportation from historic streetcar or tram systems as: The term light rail transit
4500-478: The 1970s, locomotive traction was regarded as slow and inefficient, and its use is now mostly limited to freight trains. From 1999, there have been development efforts in freight EMU technology, but it is currently used only for an express freight service on the Tokaido Main Line between Tokyo and Osaka. The government has been pushing for the adoption of freight EMU technology on energy efficiency grounds in
4600-491: The French city of Bordeaux , the tramway network is powered by a third rail in the city center, where the tracks are not always segregated from pedestrians and cars. The third rail (actually two closely spaced rails) is placed in the middle of the track and divided into eight-metre sections, each of which is powered only while it is completely covered by a tram. This minimizes the risk of a person or animal coming into contact with
4700-545: The French version of Régiolis, which belongs to the Coradia family. Metrorail , which provides commuter rail service in major urban areas of South Africa, operates most services using electric multiple unit train sets of the type 5M2A . These trains are being gradually refurbished and subsequently designated as 10M3 (Cape Town), 10M4 (Gauteng) or 10M5 (Durban). Metrorail services are split into four regions; Gauteng , KwaZulu-Natal , Eastern Cape and Western Cape . Gautrain ,
4800-985: The Japanese Shinkansen and the German Intercity-Express ICE 3 high-speed trains . A new high-speed MU, the AGV , was unveiled by France's Alstom on 5 February 2008. It has a claimed service speed of 360 km/h (220 mph). India's ICF announced the country's first high-speed engine-less train named 'train 18', which would run at 250 km/h maximum speed. Multiple units have been occasionally used for freight traffic, such as carrying containers or for trains used for maintenance. The Japanese M250 series train has four front and end carriages that are EMUs, and has been operating since March 2004. The German CargoSprinter have been used in three countries since 2003. They are more energy-efficient than locomotive-hauled trains. They have better adhesion , as more of
4900-491: The North Carolina state flower, by Nancy Blum, games motifs on both the pavers and shelters by Leticia Huerta and the painting of the bridge and retaining walls by Marek Ranis. Light rail Light rail (or light rail transit , abbreviated to LRT ) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology while also having some features from heavy rapid transit . The term
5000-593: The UK the use of modern diesel multiple units was pioneered in Northern Ireland, although a number of other railway companies also experimented with early DMUs (including the Great Western and the London Midland Scottish). Notable examples include the Sprinter and Voyager families, and the newer Javelin trains. The London Underground passenger system is operated exclusively by EMUs. Work trains on
5100-642: The US are the NJ Transit River Line from Camden to Trenton and Austin's Capital MetroRail , which have received exemptions to the provision that light rail operations occur only during daytime hours and Conrail freight service only at night, with several hours separating one operation from the other. The O-Train Trillium Line in Ottawa also has freight service at certain hours. With its mix of right-of-way types and train control technologies, LRT offers
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#17328699757385200-455: The US as a whole, excluding Seattle, new light rail construction costs average about $ 35 million per mile. By comparison, a freeway lane expansion typically costs $ 1.0 million to $ 8.5 million per lane mile for two directions, with an average of $ 2.3 million. However, freeways are frequently built in suburbs or rural areas, whereas light rail tends to be concentrated in urban areas, where right of way and property acquisition
5300-962: The Underground employ separate locomotives, some of which are dual battery/live rail powered. In Northern Ireland the majority of passenger services have been operated by diesel multiple units since the mid-1950s under the tenure of both the Ulster Transport Authority (1948–1966) and Northern Ireland Railways (since 1967). The first multiple unis in Australia were the Tait trains, wooden bodied Electric Multiple Unit train that operated in Melbourne , Victoria . They were originally introduced as steam locomotive hauled carriages but were converted to electric traction from 1919 during Melbourne’s electrification project. Indian Railways has recently introduced
5400-634: The United States and in North America . In Britain, modern light rail systems began to appear in the 1980s, starting with the Tyne and Wear Metro from 1980 and followed by the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) in London in 1987, continuing into the 1990s including the establishment of the Manchester Metrolink in 1992 and the Sheffield Supertram from 1994. Due to varying definitions, it
5500-583: The United States are limited by demand rather than capacity (by and large, most American LRT systems carry fewer than 4,000 persons per hour per direction), but Boston's and San Francisco's light rail lines carry 9,600 and 13,100 passengers per hour per track during rush hour. Elsewhere in North America, the Calgary C-Train and Monterrey Metro have higher light rail ridership than Boston or San Francisco. Systems outside North America often have much higher passenger volumes. The Manila Light Rail Transit System
5600-472: The United States, "light rail" has become a catch-all term to describe a wide variety of passenger rail systems. Light rail corridors may constitute a fully segregated corridor, a dedicated right-of-way on a street, an on-street corridor shared with other traffic, a corridor shared with other public transport, or a corridor shared with pedestrians. The most difficult distinction to draw is that between low-floor light rail and streetcar or tram systems. There
5700-415: The ability of buses to travel closer to each other than rail vehicles and their ability to overtake each other at designated locations allowing express services to bypass those that have stopped at stations. However, to achieve capacities this high, BRT station footprints need to be significantly larger than a typical LRT station. In terms of cost of operation, each bus vehicle requires a single driver, whereas
5800-420: The cars that make up the unit. In many cases these cars can only propel themselves when they are part of the unit, so they are semi-permanently coupled. For example, in a DMU one car might carry the prime mover and traction motors , and another the engine for head-end power generation; an EMU might have one car carry the pantograph and transformer , and another car carry the traction motors. MU cars can be
5900-862: The case of the Disney amusement parks , even a land train . (The usual British term for an aerial tramway is cable car , which in the US usually refers to a ground-level car pulled along by subterranean cables .) The word trolley is often used as a synonym for streetcar in the United States but is usually taken to mean a cart, particularly a shopping cart, in the UK and elsewhere. Many North American transportation planners reserve streetcar for traditional vehicles that operate exclusively in mixed traffic on city streets, while they use light rail to refer to more modern vehicles operating mostly in exclusive rights of way, since they may operate both side-by-side targeted at different passenger groups. The difference between British English and American English terminology arose in
6000-421: The closure of Glasgow Corporation Tramways (one of the largest in Europe) in 1962. Although some traditional trolley or tram systems continued to exist in San Francisco and elsewhere, the term "light rail" has come to mean a different type of rail system as modern light rail technology has primarily post-WWII West German origins. An attempt by Boeing Vertol to introduce a new American light rail vehicle in
6100-679: The costly motive power assets can be moved around as needed and also used for hauling freight trains. A multiple unit arrangement would limit these costly motive power resources to use in passenger transportation. It is difficult to have gangway connections between coupled units and still retain an aerodynamic leading front end. Because of this, there is usually no passage between high-speed coupled units, though lower-speed coupled units frequently have connections between coupled units. This may require more crew members, so that ticket inspectors, for example, can be present in all of them. This leads to higher operating costs and lower use of crew resources. In
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#17328699757386200-415: The day. This combination of factors limits roads carrying only automobile commuters to a maximum observed capacity of about 3,000 passengers per hour per lane. The problem can be mitigated by introducing high-occupancy vehicle ( HOV ) lanes and ride-sharing programs, but in most cases, policymakers have chosen to add more lanes to the roads, despite a small risk that in unfavorable situations an extension of
6300-750: The direct translation, which is city rail (the Norwegian term, by bane , means the same). However, UMTA finally adopted the term light rail instead. Light in this context is used in the sense of "intended for light loads and fast movement", rather than referring to physical weight. The infrastructure investment is also usually lighter than would be found for a heavy rail system. The American Public Transportation Association (APTA), in its Glossary of Transit Terminology, defines light rail as: ...a mode of transit service (also called streetcar, tramway, or trolley) operating passenger rail cars singly (or in short, usually two-car or three-car, trains) on fixed rails in
6400-503: The energy consumed for accelerating the train increases significantly with an increase in weight. Because of the energy efficiency and higher adhesive-weight-to-total-weight ratio values, they generally have higher acceleration ability than locomotive-type trains and are favored in urban trains and metro systems for frequent start/stop routines. Most of them have cabs at both ends, resulting in quicker turnaround times, reduced crewing costs, and enhanced safety. The faster turnaround time and
6500-438: The facility. In 2015, the island platform was extended to allow three-car trains at the station. The station consists of one island platform and four covered waiting areas; other amenities include ticket vending machines, emergency call box, and bicycle racks. Below the station embankment are four bus bays , while connected by two pedestrian bridges is the adjacent 1,120-space three level parking garage and overflow lot. East of
6600-510: The failure of one. They have lighter axle loads, allowing operation on lighter tracks, where locomotives may be banned. Another side effect of this is reduced track wear, as traction forces can be provided through many axles, rather than just the four or six of a locomotive. They generally have rigid couplers instead of the flexible ones often used on locomotive-hauled trains. That means brakes/throttle can be more quickly applied without an excessive amount of jerk experienced in passenger coaches. In
6700-451: The front car, all the traction motors in the train are controlled in unison. Most MUs are powered either by traction motors , receiving their power through a third rail or overhead wire ( EMU ), or by a diesel engine driving a generator producing electricity to drive traction motors. A MU has the same power and traction components as a locomotive , but instead of the components being concentrated in one car, they are spread throughout
6800-471: The high acceleration ability and quick turnaround times of MUs have advantages, encouraging their development in this country. Additionally, the mountainous terrain gives the MUs an advantage on grades steeper than those found in most countries, particularly on small private lines many of which run from coastal cities to small towns in the mountains. Most long-distance trains in Japan were operated by locomotives until
6900-585: The hope that widespread adoption could assist in meeting CO 2 emissions targets. The effort has been principally targeted at express package shipping that would otherwise travel by road. The first EMUs have been introduced in Belgium in the 1930s. Several models have followed since then, such as the AM75 . CIÉ introduced its first DMUs , the 2600-class, in 1951. Elektrichka ( Russian : электри́чка , Ukrainian : електри́чка , romanized : elektrychka )
7000-453: The late 19th century when Americans adopted the term "street railway", rather than "tramway", with the vehicles being called "streetcars" rather than "trams". Some have suggested that the Americans' preference for the term "street railway" at that time was influenced by German emigrants to the United States (who were more numerous than British immigrants in the industrialized Northeast), as it is
7100-524: The latter is described as light rail. In those places, trams running on mixed rights-of-way are not regarded as a light rail but considered distinctly as streetcars or trams. However, the requirement for saying that a rail line is "separated" can be quite low—sometimes just with concrete "buttons" to discourage automobile drivers from getting onto the tracks. Some systems such as Seattle's Link had on-road mixed sections but were closed to regular road traffic, with light rail vehicles and buses both operating along
7200-455: The light rail concept was the "Shaker Heights Rapid Transit" which started in the 1920s, was renovated in 1980-81 and is now part of RTA Rapid Transit . Many original tram and streetcar systems in the United Kingdom , United States , and elsewhere were decommissioned starting in the 1950s as subsidies for the car increased. Britain abandoned its tram systems, except for Blackpool , with
7300-442: The locomotive-hauled passenger services still in operation, the majority are tourist-oriented, such as the numerous steam-hauled trains operated seasonally on scenic lines throughout the country, as well as some of the luxury cruise trains. Japan is a country of high population density with a large number of railway passengers in relatively small urban areas, and frequent operation of short-distance trains has been required. Therefore,
7400-465: The old and new systems. Since the 1980s, Portland, Oregon , has built all three types of system: a high-capacity light rail system in dedicated lanes and rights-of-way, a low-capacity streetcar system integrated with street traffic, and an aerial tram system . The opposite phrase heavy rail , used for higher-capacity, higher-speed systems, also avoids some incompatibilities in terminology between British and American English, for instance in comparing
7500-616: The peak direction during rush hour. Multiple unit A multiple-unit train (or multiple unit ( MU )) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined, which if coupled to another multiple unit can be controlled by a single driver, with multiple-unit train control . Although multiple units consist of several carriages, single self-propelled carriages – also called railcars , rail motor coaches or railbuses – are in fact multiple units when two or more of them are working connected through multiple-unit train control (regardless of whether passengers can walk between
7600-537: The reduced size (due to higher frequencies) as compared to large locomotive -hauled trains, has made the MU a major part of suburban commuter rail services in many countries. MUs are also used by most rapid transit systems. However, the need to turn a locomotive is no longer a problem for locomotive-hauled trains due to the increasing use of push pull trains . Multiple units may usually be quickly made up or separated into sets of varying lengths. Several multiple units may run as
7700-540: The required clearance height can be reduced significantly compared to conventional light rail vehicles. Reference speed from major light rail systems, including station stop time, is shown below. However, low top speed is not always a differentiating characteristic between light rail and other systems. For example, the Siemens S70 LRVs used in the Houston METRORail and other North American LRT systems have
7800-432: The right-of-way that is often separated from other traffic for part or much of the way. Light rail vehicles are typically driven electrically with power being drawn from an overhead electric line via a trolley [pole] or a pantograph ; driven by an operator onboard the vehicle; and may have either high platform loading or low-level boarding using steps." However, some diesel-powered transit is designated light rail, such as
7900-415: The road network might lead to increased travel times ( Downs–Thomson paradox , Braess's paradox ). By contrast, light rail vehicles can travel in multi-car trains carrying a theoretical ridership up to 20,000 passengers per hour in much narrower rights-of-way , not much more than two car lanes wide for a double track system. They can often be run through existing city streets and parks , or placed in
8000-401: The roads. Typically roadways have 1,900 passenger cars per lane per hour (pcplph). If only cars are allowed, the capacity will be less and will not increase when the traffic volume increases. When there is a bus driving on this route, the capacity of the lane will be higher and will increase when the traffic level increases. And because the capacity of a light rail system is higher than that of
8100-662: The same as the German term for the mode, Straßenbahn (meaning "street railway"). A further difference arose because, while Britain abandoned all of its trams after World War II except in Blackpool , eight major North American cities ( Toronto , Boston , Philadelphia , San Francisco , Pittsburgh , Newark , Cleveland , and New Orleans ) continued to operate large streetcar systems. When these cities upgraded to new technology, they called it light rail to differentiate it from their existing streetcars since some continued to operate both
8200-408: The standard gauge is that standard railway maintenance equipment can be used on it, rather than custom-built machinery. Using standard gauges also allows light rail vehicles to be conveniently moved around using the same tracks as freight railways. Additionally, wider gauges (e.g. standard gauge) provide more floor clearance on low-floor trams that have constricted pedestrian areas at the wheels, which
8300-473: The station is Interstate 485 (I-485) and the town of Pineville. Originally, the southern terminus for the Blue Line was proposed for downtown Pineville, near NC 51 . In 2002, the southern end was moved approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to the north along South Boulevard at its present location as a result of low projected ridership figures for the proposed downtown Pineville station. The parking garage
8400-494: The station is the additional 246-space surface parking lot , known as Lot A. Parking is free for patrons for either bus or light rail and is limited to 24 hours. Walkways from the parking garage connect to Sterling Elementary School and the Sterling neighborhood. The station also features several art installations including bas-reliefs entitled Skyrocket Oak by Alice Adams, drinking fountain basins designed to look like dogwoods ,
8500-497: The station received the Federal Highway Administration 's Award of Excellence in the "Intermodal Transportation Facilities" category. In November 2008, an additional 54 space parking lot was opened to the east of the station platform due to frequent overflow conditions (later expanding to 246 spaces). By August 2009, digital signs were added to the garage to alert motorists as to how many spaces remain prior to entering
8600-551: The system was a success with the public, gaining up to 190,000 passengers per day. Automatic train operation is employed on light rail networks, tracking the position and speed of a train and hence adjusting its movement for safety and efficiency. One line of light rail (requires 7.6 m, 25' right of way) has a theoretical capacity of up to 8 times more than one 3.7 m (12 foot) lane on a freeway, excluding busses, during peak times. Roads have ultimate capacity limits that can be determined by traffic engineering , and usually experience
8700-410: The train's weight is carried on driven wheels, rather than the locomotive having to haul the dead weight of unpowered coaches. They have a higher power-to-weight-ratio than a locomotive-hauled train since they don't have a heavy locomotive that does not itself carry passengers, but contributes to the total weight of the train. This is particularly important where train services make frequent stops, since
8800-703: The train, therefore every car can be used as a cab car whether it is motorised or not, if on the end of the train. An example of this arrangement is the NJ Transit Arrows. Virtually all rapid-transit rolling stock, such as on the New York City Subway , the London Underground , the Paris Metro and other subway systems, are multiple-units, usually EMUs. Most trains in the Netherlands and Japan are MUs, being suitable for use in areas of high population density. Many high-speed rail trains are also multiple-units, such as
8900-520: The train. Failure of a multiple unit will often require a whole new train and time-consuming switching activities; also passengers would be asked to evacuate the failed train and board another one. However, if the train consists of more than one multiple unit they are often designed such that in the event of the failure of one unit others in the train can tow it in neutral if brakes and other safety systems are operational. Idle trains do not waste expensive motive power resources. Separate locomotives mean that
9000-499: The trams, making it safe on city streets. Several systems in Europe and a few recently opened systems in North America use diesel -powered trains. When electric streetcars were introduced in the late 19th century, conduit current collection was one of the first ways of supplying power, but it proved to be much more expensive, complicated, and trouble-prone than overhead wires . When electric street railways became ubiquitous, conduit power
9100-404: The units or not). Multiple-unit train control was first used in electric multiple units in the 1890s. The Liverpool Overhead Railway opened in 1893 with two-car electric multiple units, controllers in cabs at both ends directly controlling the traction current to motors on both cars. The multiple-unit traction control system was developed by Frank Sprague and first applied and tested on
9200-455: The vast majority of light rail systems. This avoids the danger potentially presented by an electrified third rail . The Docklands Light Railway uses an inverted third rail for its electrical power, which allows the electrified rail to be covered and the power drawn from the underside. Trams in Bordeaux , France, use a special third-rail configuration where the power is only switched on beneath
9300-434: The widest range of latitude of any rail system in the design, engineering, and operating practices. The challenge in designing light rail systems is to realize the potential of LRT to provide fast, comfortable service while avoiding the tendency to overdesign that results in excessive capital costs beyond what is necessary to meet the public's needs. The BART railcar in the following chart is not generally considered to be
9400-527: Was coined in 1972 by the U.S. Urban Mass Transportation Administration (UMTA; the precursor to the Federal Transit Administration ) to describe new streetcar transformations that were taking place in Europe and the United States. In Germany, the term Stadtbahn (to be distinguished from S-Bahn , which stands for Stadtschnellbahn ) was used to describe the concept, and many in UMTA wanted to adopt
9500-502: Was coined in 1972 in the United States as an English equivalent for the German word Stadtbahn , meaning "city railway". Different definitions exist in some countries, but in the United States, light rail operates primarily along exclusive rights-of-way and uses either individual tramcars or multiple units coupled together, with a lower capacity and speed than a long heavy rail passenger train or rapid transit system. Narrowly defined, light rail transit uses rolling stock that
9600-662: Was introduced in North America in 1972 to describe this new concept of rail transportation. Prior to that time the abbreviation "LRT" was used for " Light Rapid Transit " and " Light Rail Rapid Transit ". The first of the new light rail systems in North America began operation in 1978 when the Canadian city of Edmonton, Alberta , adopted the German Siemens-Duewag U2 system, followed three years later by Calgary, Alberta , and San Diego, California . The concept proved popular, with there now being numerous light rail systems in
9700-610: Was the Gross-Lichterfelde tramway in Lichterfelde near Berlin in Germany, which opened in 1881. It was built by Werner von Siemens who contacted Pirotsky. It initially drew current from the rails, with overhead wire being installed in 1883. The first interurban to emerge in the United States was the Newark and Granville Street Railway in Ohio, which opened in 1889. An early example of
9800-453: Was the beginning of the general service of multiple unit trains in China's national railway system. Far earlier than the introduction of CRH brand, multiple unit trains have been running on all major cities' metro lines in China. In Japan most passenger trains, including the high-speed Shinkansen , are of the multiple-unit (MU) type, with most locomotives now used solely in freight operations. Of
9900-502: Was the only one constructed along the original line, and was built in a ravine adjacent to Sterling Elementary School. The 1,120 space garage and overflow lot was completed at a cost of $ 22.9 million, with the top floor featuring a playing field for the adjacent school. The station officially opened for service on Saturday, November 24, 2007, and as part of its opening celebration fares were not collected. Regular service with fare collection commenced on Monday, November 26, 2007. In late 2008
10000-517: Was used in those cities that did not permit overhead wires. In Europe, it was used in London, Paris, Berlin, Marseille, Budapest, and Prague. In the United States, it was used in parts of New York City and Washington, D.C. Third rail technology was investigated for use on the Gold Coast of Australia for the G:link light rail, though power from overhead lines was ultimately utilized for that system. In
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