Chinese narrow gauge railways
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The gauge for the most of the China national railway network is standard gauge. Currently, in the national railway network, only Kunming-Hekou Railway uses narrow gauge, and it is expected to be converted into standard gauge soon. In addition, there are some industrial lines still using narrow gauge.
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[edit] Operational narrow gauge railways
[edit] Kunming-Hekou Railway
The 1,000 mm (3 ft 3⅜ in) gauge Kunming-Hekou Railway (previously known as Sino-Vietnamese Railway) was built by French colonists between Vietnam and China. It is now inoperative for passengers due to landslides but does have freight services. This railway, opened in 1910, had a 2 ft (610 mm) gauge branch line from Jijie to Gejiu which operated 0-10-0 tender locos built by Baldwin Locomotive Works[1]. The metre gauge section was originally administered in more or less the same way as the Indochinese networks, and it was physically possible for through trains to be run from Kunming to Singapore, as metre gauge was used in both these countries. During the Japanese occupation Japanese National Railways Class 9600 2-8-0 locomotives were shipped to aid their invasion, and after the completion of the "death railway" it was possible for a time for through traffic to Burma and further, the Indian metre gauge network. This is now impossible as sections of this railway have been destroyed during the conflicts since World War II[1].
[edit] Industrial railways
In Manchuria, lumber industries built narrow gauge railways into the forests. These used Russian and Japanese locomotives, copied from Soviet or Eastern European designs. Now most of them have disappeared. These railways mostly use a gauge of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm). In many provinces 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge light railways were used for mines and prominently in Henan and Sichuan they were used for rural transportation, ironically most of them were built in an era when most European light railways had started to dwindle in favour of roads. One light railway in Sichuan is being preserved as China's first heritage steam railway[1].
[edit] Historic narrow gauge railways
Metre gauge railways were popular in China in several regions before the 1949 communist takeover. The railway from Shijiazhuang to Taiyuan was opened at the turn of the century. It was French and Belgian controlled, since it was a feeder of the Belgian controlled Peking-Hankow Railway. To minimise costs, it was built to the same 1,000 mm (3 ft 3⅜ in) gauge of the Kunming Hekou Railway, with the hope that the latter could be extended to Shanxi province and so join the two railways, forming a new sphere of influence for the French. Although this did not materialise, as a result, the Railway from Datong to Pukou, opened in 1933, which was funded by the Japanese and controlled by the Shanxi warlord, Yan Xishan, and which connected the Shijiazhuang - Taiyuan Railway at Taiyuan, had to be built to metre gauge as well. While the Shijiazhung - Taiyuan Railway (sometimes known as Zheng Tai Railway) was built to the nature of a light railway and used rolling stock built in France and Belgium, the Datong - Pukou Railway (Tong Pu Railway) used rolling stock built by Japanese companies, even withdrawn old Japanese National Railways or Imperial Taiwan Railway stock. When the Japanese invaded the Shanxi and Hebei provinces during the Sino-Japanese War, these two railways were converted to standard gauge[1].
In many rural or suburban areas, metre gauge railways were built to transport agricultural produce. Such was the case of two light railways east of Pudong, Shanghai. They were isolated systems using small tank engines, like 4-4-2Ts. Later, experiments were made with gasoline railcar and trailer sets having Ford engines. They were closed in the 1950s and 1970s respectively and replaced by bus services[1].
There were several 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge military railways in Manchuria during the Russo-Japanese War. These Japanese military railways - which includes a section converted from the 5ft broad gauge Chinese Eastern Railway - used Japanese National Railways stock and were quickly converted back to standard gauge after the war to facilitate through traffic with the British controlled Peking Mukden Railway, which was standard gauge. As a result the South Manchurian Railway, a creation of the Japanese Kwantung Army, was standard gauge[1].
[edit] Hong Kong
The Kowloon-Canton Railway (now East Rail) was originally partially laid to 2 ft (610 mm) and 3 ft (914 mm) gauge during its construction, and the latter was proposed to be its gauge since the tunnel could only accommodate 3 ft (914 mm) gauge if the line was to be double track throughout. However it was built to standard gauge and was single track, retaining space at places for later expansion. The now-defunct Sha Tau Kok Railway, built in 1911 and closed in 1928, constructed of the same materials used for constructing the main line, was 2 ft (610 mm) gauge. The famous Hong Kong Tramways are 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) gauge. The MTR uses a gauge of 1432 mm, 3 mm narrower than the standard gauge. Originally it was to be standard gauge but when the link between the KCR and MTR at Kowloon Tong fell into disuse due to the difference in the choice of voltage for their respective electrification plans, the latter favoured a narrower gauge for technical reasons. This has proven to be an impediment of the proposed merger between the two systems[1].
The haematite mine at Ma On Shan used an electric internal railway network of 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) gauge, but closed in 1975[1].
The Kowloon Godowns in Tsim Sha Tsui, before redevelopment in the 1970s, also had an extensive network of 2 ft (610 mm) gauge tracks using tiny hand-pushed 2-axle trucks. Similar systems existed elsewhere in Hong Kong. Railways believed to be metre gauge existed in Taikoo Dockyards and Whampoa Dockyards, though standard gauge is more probable for the latter, since it was connected to the main line network after 1937. A cement works in To Kwa Wan, north of the Whampoa dockyards, used a small internal narrow gauge system with jubilee track and wagons, but apart from a few aerial photographs available at the lands Department Mapping Office, there is little available information about this system[1].
During the reclamation of Kowloon Bay for the construction of the Kai Tack estates jubilee track and steam locomotives were used to convey spoil. This area became the Kai Tak Airport which has now been demolished[1].
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j A Picture Album of Steam Locomotives in China, 1876 - 2001. China Rail Publishing House. ISBN 7-113-04147-7.
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