Minimum-gauge railways are railways with track gauges smaller than those ofnarrow-gauge railways, primarily designed for light, industrial, or tourist transportation. The most common gauges for minimum-gauge railways include:
These railways have been developed for applications such as estate transport, mining, agriculture, and amusement parks, offering an economical and adaptable solution for restricted environments.[1][2]
The term was originally conceived bySir Arthur Percival Heywood, who used it in 1874 to describe the principle behind hisDuffield Bank Railway, specifically its15 in (381 mm) gauge, distinguishing it from anarrow-gauge railway. Having previously built a small railway of9 in (229 mm) gauge, he settled on15 in (381 mm) as the minimum that he felt was practical.[1]
In general, minimum-gauge railways maximize theirloading gauge, where the dimension of the equipment is made as large as possible with respect to the track gauge while still providing enough stability to keep it from tipping over. Standard-gauge railways have vehicles that are approximately twice, and in some cases nearly three times, the track gauge in width, but with minimum-gauge railways this can be as much as four times the width of the track as in some of the sugar cane railways of Australia. Minimum-gauge railways allowed for ease of mobility on battlefields, mines, and other restricted environments.
A number of18 in (457 mm) gauge railways were built in Britain to serve ammunition depots and other military facilities, particularly during the First World War.
InSouth Australia the Semaphore toFort Glanville Conservation Park includes a steam engine service that runs on an18 in (457 mm) track.
In France,Decauville produced a range of portable track railways running on400 mm (15+3⁄4 in) and500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) tracks, most commonly in restricted environments such asunderground mine railways, parks and farms.[2]
During World War II, it was proposed to expedite theYunnan–Burma Railway using400 mm (15+3⁄4 in) gauge, since such a small gauge can have thetightest of curves in difficult terrain.[3]
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The major distinction between aminiature railway (US: 'riding railroad' or 'grand scale railroad') and a minimum-gauge railway is that miniature lines use models of full-sized prototypes. There are miniature railways that run on gauges as wide as2 ft (610 mm), for example theWicksteed Park Railway. There are also rideable miniature railways running on extremely narrow tracks as small as10+1⁄4 in (260 mm) gauge, for example theRudyard Lake Steam Railway. Around the world there are also several rideable miniature railways open to the public using even narrower gauges, such as7+1⁄4 in (184 mm) and7+1⁄2 in (190.5 mm).
Generally minimum-gauge railways have a working function as estate railways, or industrial railways, or providers of public transport links; although most have a distinct function in relation to tourism, and depend upon tourism for the revenue to support their working function.
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| Name | Gauge | Country | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 381 mm (15 in) | ||||
| SeeFifteen-inch gauge railway | 15 in (381 mm) | |||
| Prater Liliputbahn | 15 in (381 mm) |  Austria | Prater Park,Vienna, Austria | |
| Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway | 15 in (381 mm) |  UK | Kent, United kingdom | |
| The Valley Railway Adventure (Formerly the Evesham Vale Light Railway)) | 15 in (381 mm) | UK | Evesham Country Park, Worcestershire | |
| Whistlestop Valley (Formerly Kirklees Light Railway) | 15 in (381 mm) | UK | Kirklees, West Yorkshire | |
| Bure Valley Railway | 15 in (381 mm) | UK | Aylsham to Wroxham, Norfolk | |
| 400 mm (15 3⁄4 in) | ||||
| Rufisque tramway | 400 mm (15+3⁄4 in) |  France | ||
| 16 in (406 mm) | ||||
| Candy Cane Express | 16 in (406 mm) |  Canada | Santa's Village Family Entertainment Park,Bracebridge, Ontario | Replica diesel locomotive with passenger cars, working as amusement park ride |
| Alamogordo/Alameda Park Narrow Gauge Railway | 16 in (406 mm) |  US | The Toy Train Depot,Alamogordo, New Mexico | |
| Balboa Park Miniature Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Balboa Park (San Diego),San Diego,California | [4][5] |
| Cedar Rock Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Leander, Texas | [6] |
| Chippewa Valley Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Carson Park (Eau Claire, Wisconsin),Eau Claire, Wisconsin | |
| Lakeland Amusement Park | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Lakeland, Tennessee | Defunct |
| Little Florida Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens,Sanford, Florida | Closed[7] |
| Michigan AuSable Valley Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Fairview, Michigan | Defunct as of November, 2017[8] |
| Old Smokey Train | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Knoebels Amusement Resort,Elysburg, Pennsylvania | [9] |
| Pinconning and Blind River Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Fairview, Michigan (1953–1973) | [10] |
| Pioneer Train | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Knoebels Amusement Resort,Elysburg, Pennsylvania | [11] |
| Salt Mine Express | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Strataca Salt Mine Adventure,Hutchinson, Kansas, 650 feet underground | [12] |
| Schnepf Farms | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Schnepf Frams,Queen Creek.Arizona | [13] |
| Smokey Joe Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Eastern Shore Threshermen & Collectors Association,Federalsburg, Maryland | [14] |
| Travel Town Railroad | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Travel Town Museum,Los Angeles,California | |
| Whiskey River Railway | 16 in (406 mm) | US | Little Amerricka,Marshall, Wisconsin | |
| 16+1⁄2 in (419 mm) | ||||
| Island Park Railway | 16+1⁄2 in (419 mm) | Canada | Woodstock, New Brunswick | [15] |
| 18 in (457 mm) | ||||
| National Railway Museum | 18 in (457 mm) |  Australia | Port Adelaide, South Australia | [16] |
| Semaphore & Fort Glanville Tourist Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | Australia | Semaphore, South Australia | Operated by the National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide |
| Aotea Railway | 18 in (457 mm) |  New Zealand | Aotea Lagoon, Porirua | |
| Bicton Woodland Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | UK | United Kingdom | |
| Heath Park Tramway | 455 mm (17+15⁄16 in) 18 in (457 mm) | UK | Cardiff | [17] |
| Royal Arsenal Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | UK | ||
| Sand Hutton Light Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | UK | ||
| Steeple Grange Light Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | UK | ||
| Sundown Adventure Land | 18 in (457 mm) | UK | Retford, Nottinghamshire | [citation needed] |
| Terrific Train | 18 in (457 mm) | UK | New Metroland, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear | |
| Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad | 18 in (457 mm) | US | Oak Meadows Park and Vasona Park,Los Gatos, California | [18] |
| Collegeville and Southern Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | US | [19] | |
| Fidalgo City and Anacortes Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | US | ||
| Meadows and Lake Kathleen Railroad[20][21][22] | 18 in (457 mm) | US | [23] | |
| Venice Miniature Railway | 18 in (457 mm) | US | Venice Beach, California | 1943–1968[24] |
| 18+1⁄2 in (470 mm) | ||||
| Griffith Park & Southern Railroad | 18+1⁄2 in (470 mm) | US | Griffith Park,Los Angeles,California | |
| 19 in (483 mm) | ||||
| Swanton Pacific Railroad | 19 in (483 mm) | US | Swanton Pacific Ranch,Swanton, California | Defunct since 2020 |
| 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) | ||||
| Southern Fuegian Railway | 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) |  Argentina | ||
| Geriatriezentrum am Wienerwald Feldbahn | 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) | Austria | ||
| Chemin de Fer Touristique du Tarn | 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) | France | ||
| Jardin d'Acclimatation railway | 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) | France | ||
| Petit train d'Artouste | 500 mm (19+3⁄4 in) | France | ||
| 20 in (508 mm) | ||||
| Ledesma Mill Railway | 20 in (508 mm) | Argentina | Province of Jujuy | Partially 20 in[25] |
| Stanley Park Miniature Railway | 20 in (508 mm) | Canada | Stanley Park,Vancouver, British Columbia | |
| North Bay Railway | 20 in (508 mm) | UK | Scarborough, North Yorkshire | |
| Shipley Glen Tramway | 20 in (508 mm) | UK | ||
| Woburn Safari Park | 20 in (508 mm) | UK | ||
| Coronado Railroad | 20 in (508 mm) | US | Chase Creek | |
| Huff Puff and Whistle Railroad | 20 in (508 mm) | US | Story Land,Glen, New Hampshire | |
| Krasnoyarsk Child Railway | 20 in (508 mm) |  Russia | Central Park,Krasnoyarsk[26][27] | |
| 21 in (533 mm) | ||||
| Pleasure Beach Express | 21 in (533 mm) | UK | Blackpool, Lancashire | |
| 1 ft 10 in (559 mm) | ||||
| Little Puffer Miniature Steam Train | 1 ft 10 in (559 mm) | US | San Francisco Zoo,San Francisco, California | [28] |
| 1 ft 10+3⁄4 in (578 mm) | ||||
| Orient Express | 1 ft 10+3⁄4 in (578 mm) | US | Lakeside Amusement Park,Denver, Colorado | [29][30] |
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'C.P. Huntington C.P. #3' is the miniature train that operates at Pullen Park.
This train replaced a Miniature Train & Railroad Company G-16 that was installed in 1956. The G-16 ran on 16" gauge track, and resembled a diesel locomotive, painted in the colors of the Union Pacific Railroad. The track is dual-gauge: 16" for the former train and 24" for the current one. The train operates on a 2,600 foot oval-shaped loop that encircles the picnic areas.
