Isolated, and Very Isolated, railways

[edwin_m]

As does Madrid, which has a narrow gauge line to Los Cotos, currently closed for refurbishment, the C9 line. No narrow gauges around for hundreds of miles

Barcelona Metro has three different track gauges, only one of which is almost (but not quite) the same as the Spanish main line network.

 

[Shimbleshanks]

Don't think anyone has mentioned the line around Eregli, in Turkey yet.

It is, or was, south-west of Zonguldak, on the Black Sea coast (I now see, looking at the map - I hadn't realised it's location, or had forgotten the Sea bit!)

I'm not sure if it carried passengers, at least to a timetable. (Not that timetables used to mean much in Turkey 50 years ago.) It may have been purely for coal trains from the mine(s) to the coast, I suppose.

I think we got a bus from Adapazari and stopped off to photograph it one year. IIRC, it had one TCDD locomotive allocated to it, so it was part of the national network.

Also in Turkey there is or was the line eastwards from Lake Van to the Iranian border. It made connection with the Iranian railway network but was isolated from the rest of the Turkish network, except by train ferry across the lake.

 

[The exile]

Residents operate their own small powered rail vehicles, known as "Loren",

Ever wondered where our word “lorry” comes from?!

 

[The Pelican]

Also in Turkey there is or was the line eastwards from Lake Van to the Iranian border. It made connection with the Iranian railway network but was isolated from the rest of the Turkish network, except by train ferry across the lake.

I've always found this mountain lake railway ferry a fascinating thing, because such major railway networks are located on each side. As well as Iran, it would be the only standard gauge route to the edge of the broad gauge networks of Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. Since Thailand's or Mynamar's railways have never connected to Bangladesh or India, or any railway crossed the highest points of the Himalayas, the route via Iran is the only external connection to those networks.

 

[AndrewE]

Ever wondered where our word “lorry” comes from?!

I always though it was a specific sort of horse-drawn vehicle. 55 years ago the Chambers dictionary said

a long wagon without sides, or with low sides. [Origin uncertain]

and a Wagon was

"a 4-wheeled vehicle, esp. one for carrying heavy goods."

 

[The Pelican]

In a similar vein, the MTA Staten Island line is completely disconnected from all lines in the 5 Boroughs of NYC. I imagine that at one time there might have been a link to the (now) freight lines that cross from New Jersey via the Arthur Kill Vertical Lift bridge, but the nearest points on the surviving two arms of that network are both nearly 5Km from the MTA line.

The Hudson-Bergen light rail tram goes right to the edge of a bridge to Staten Island. I think a tram extension to connect with the subway line would be an interesting project, although less direct than the ferry.

 

[AndrewE]

They apparently still use "rail car floats" to get across New York Bay to avoid the "Selkirk Hurdle" - which sounds to me like a manoeuvre in Mornington Crescent!
The freight railway line isn't actually isolated, but it's a long way round otherwise... Wikipedia says https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selkirk_hurdl

he Selkirk Hurdle is the term used by urban planners, railroad employees, politicians, and others to describe the route that must be taken by freight trains traveling between New York City and other points in downstate New York that are east of the Hudson River, and locations in the United States to the south and west.[citation needed] There are no rail freight bridges or tunnels that cross the Hudson River south of Selkirk, which is 10 miles (16 km) south of Albany and the home of Selkirk Yard, a major CSX classification yard. As a result, trains from Long Island and New York City (except for the borough of Staten Island which can be reached via the Arthur Kill Vertical Lift Bridge ) must travel 140 miles (230 km) north to cross at Selkirk before continuing on their way.[1]
/snip/
The only alternative to the Selkirk Hurdle is for rail cars to be floated across Upper New York Bay: an operation run until 2006 by the New York Cross Harbor Railroad and currently run by New York New Jersey Rail, LLC, now owned by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. The Port Authority is investing in improvements to its decayed infrastructure, much of which was washed away by Hurricane Sandy. As trucking has become more prevalent, rail float operations across the bay have dwindled and freight operations on the Bay Ridge Branch have decreased from 600,000 railcar loads per year to less than 3,000 carloads per year.[5] The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey hopes some day to transport as many as 25,000 cars annually.[6]
Eliminating the Selkirk Hurdle is a primary objective of the Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel, proposed to span Upper New York Bay between Brooklyn and Jersey City, New Jersey. A draft environmental impact study for the project was released in November 2014.[7]

 

[Paul AC]

As does Madrid, which has a narrow gauge line to Los Cotos, currently closed for refurbishment, the C9 line. No narrow gauges around for hundreds of miles

Not strictly correct. The Tajuña Railway was a ~160 km metre gauge railway running south and east from Madrid, operating from 1886 to 1997. A 4 km length is preserved at La Poveda, near Arganda del Rey, and accessible via a short walk from the La Poveda stop on the 1445 mm gauge Madrid metro line 9.

My photos from a January 2025 visit on my web site starting at https://www.steane.com/gallery/picture.php?/7647/category/717

 

[The Pelican]

They apparently still use "rail car floats" to get across New York Bay to avoid the "Selkirk Hurdle" - which sounds to me like a manoeuvre in Mornington Crescent!
The freight railway line isn't actually isolated, but it's a long way round otherwise... Wikipedia says https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selkirk_hurdl

I have a feeling at least some of those Brooklyn and Manhattan freight transfer networks were isolated at various stages- some people have made very impressive G scale models of them, and they provide a good location for shunting interest, such as the classic model railway "Inglenook" design.

This railroad.net discussion from 2005: https://railroad.net/how-many-pieces-of-isolated-track-in-ny-t17569.html
tries to work out which of the Brooklyn networks was actually isolated- it sounds like most of them were!

 

[Flying_Turtle]

Not strictly correct. The Tajuña Railway was a ~160 km metre gauge railway running south and east from Madrid, operating from 1886 to 1997. A 4 km length is preserved at La Poveda, near Arganda del Rey, and accessible via a short walk from the La Poveda stop on the 1445 mm gauge Madrid metro line 9.

My photos from a January 2025 visit on my web site starting at https://www.steane.com/gallery/picture.php?/7647/category/717

I stand corrected! Thank you!

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 10 Aug 2026 ==

That is like the Elblag canal in Poland, where the current passenger boats are hauled up and down a succession of quite big inclined planes on wheeled cradles, again powered by waterwheels. It was restored about a decade or two ago and is very well worth visiting.
Lots of videos online, including some archive from the 1930's of boats carrying timber, its original use.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 10 Aug 2026 ==


See post #20...

I missed that post. Thank you

 

[Mr. SW]

It strikes me that the original City and South London Railway was isolated. As was the Tower Subway, the original Baker Street & Waterloo and the original Charing Cross Euston & Hampstead.
The Central London Railway appeared to be isolated but wasn't: there was a siding connection to the West London Railway.

Does the Docklands Light Railway count?

There was a very isolated ironstone railway on Raasay, and lines on Steep Holm and Flat Holm in the Bristol Channel. Were there other isolated lines on any other Scottish islands?

 

[The Pelican]

It strikes me that the original City and South London Railway was isolated. As was the Tower Subway, the original Baker Street & Waterloo and the original Charing Cross Euston & Hampstead.
The Central London Railway appeared to be isolated but wasn't: there was a siding connection to the West London Railway.

Does the Docklands Light Railway count?

There was a very isolated ironstone railway on Raasay, and lines on Steep Holm and Flat Holm in the Bristol Channel. Were there other isolated lines on any other Scottish islands?

Similarly, the Liverpool Overhead Railway not isolated, the Glasgow Subway tunnels were originally isolated from each other, and Leeds' 4ft 8.5inch having gauge change operation to Bradford's 4ft gauge network.

I'd count the Docklands light railway as a substantial isolated network, and the current Northern Line as a substantial almost isolated network, due to the single connection to the Picadilly Line. Similarly, I think the current Victoria Line stock had to be delivered by road, even though there's a track connection for smaller vehicles, like the 1967 stock.

Sofia in Bulgaria has some 1,000mm and some 1435mm tram lines- it will be interesting to see if it converts to one or the other.

 

[Acathater]

If you're including lines that are "isolated" in the sense of disconnected, rather than remote or distant then there must be any number of historic industrial lines.
Examples are Portland where you had the Admiralty and Merchants tramways supporting the quarries. Others are reservoir lines such as the Stocks reservoir complex in Lancashire, or the various narrow gauge lines used when building the Thirlmere/Haweswater aqueducts. Or industrial sites such as the lines serving the Carnforth Ironworks, associated quarries and waste disposal sites.

 

[Mr. SW]

West Somerset Mineral Railway.
Rye and Camber.

 

[Shimbleshanks]

I've always found this mountain lake railway ferry a fascinating thing, because such major railway networks are located on each side. As well as Iran, it would be the only standard gauge route to the edge of the broad gauge networks of Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. Since Thailand's or Mynamar's railways have never connected to Bangladesh or India, or any railway crossed the highest points of the Himalayas, the route via Iran is the only external connection to those networks.

A guy called Christopher Portway travelled that and other routes in the early 1970s, when it was presumably more doable from a physical and geopolitical point of view - Corner Seat and Double Circuit. Long out of print but might still be available if you search online.

 

[181]

A guy called Christopher Portway travelled that and other routes in the early 1970s, when it was presumably more doable from a physical and geopolitical point of view - Corner Seat and Double Circuit. Long out of print but might still be available if you search online.

Also Paul Theroux in The Great Railway Bazaar, which it might be easier to find a copy of.

 

[Golghar]

Also Paul Theroux in The Great Railway Bazaar, which it might be easier to find a copy of.

The line upto Zahedan on the Iranian side of the Iran-Pakistan border wasn't completed yet. He took the road from Mashad through Afghanistan to Landi Kotal, the terminus on the Pakistan side of the Khyber Pass.
Paul Theroux's book contains some fascinating snapshots of 1973, the year in which he made his journey. Among other things he was issued a through first class cardboard Edmondson ticket from Madras Egmore to Colombo Fort, which included the price of the ferry. I used to collect Edmondson tickets and would have loved to lay my hands on this one.

 

[scarby]

Stockholm has two isolated local railways. Roslagsbanan, a narrow gauge railway that serves the northeastern suburbs. And Saltsjöbanan to the southeastern suburbs. Saltsjöbanan is standard gauge but not connected to the national rail network and electrified with 750 V overhead wire.

Currently Saltsjöbanan is especially isolated due to major rebuilding work at Slussen. Cut back to Henriksdal in 2016 with a short connecting bus, it has now been further truncated to Saltsjö-Jarla due to works in the Nacka area.

I travelled on it yesterday and what a pleasure - I have never seen it like this, with hardly anyone aboard, a real thowback to feeling as if you are in the 1970s. On most journeys I had a carriage to myself or with one or two people.

The buses now go right through to the terminus at Saltsjöbaden, presumably to calm locals who have already seen 10 years of disruption to what they thought was a location with a great direct service to Slussen.

Therefore most 'normals' are using the buses, meaning the railway is incredibly quiet.

With its old stock and some old stations, and such peace and quiet to travel in - a real rarity these days - I heartily recommended a visit. It won't last and once the connection to Slussen is restored and new stock is introduced, this atmosphere will be lost forever as it will become just another modern railway.

 

[FormerBritInMe]

In the US, Colorado and New Mexico have 2 isolated narrow gauge (914mm or 3 feet) lines that are remnants of a larger narrow gauge system. The Cumbres & Toltec line runs from Chama NM to Antonito CO where there is a standard gauge line. The Durango and Silverton line runs between the 2 namesake towns. The latter is notable as having run consistently since its opening in 1882 and the consistent use of steam traction during that time, although diesels are now used for some trains. Originally the D&RGW narrow gauge mainline ran from Durango to Alamosa and the Line to Silverton was a branch off of this line. The Durango to Alamosa line ceased operating in 1968. The portion from Durango to Chama NM was torn up in 1971 and today is a trail. The Silverton branch never cased operating, although the Denver and Rio Grande Western RR wanted to get rid of it since there was little or no freight business. However tourist interest increased over the years and eventually in the 1980s the line was sold to a separate company to operate it strictly as a tourist attraction, although hikers do use it to access some otherwise unreachable locations along the line.

 

[etr221]

Perhaps we should include the shortlived Grand Crimean Central Railway built in 1855 during the Crimean War by the United Kingdom to support the siege of Sevastopol. The line was built at cost by Brassey, Peto and Betts with absolutely everything (track, rolling stock, engineers and navvies etc) sent out from the UK on a flotilla of ships. The line was completed with remarkable speed in seven weeks, the first trains running just three weeks after construction started. It illustrates what could be done back in the day before progress intervened!

There was an equally isolated and short lived railway built to support the Abyssinian Campaign of 1868, running inland from the coast at Zula (now in Eritrea) - I'm not sure how far it got. Built I think with material supplied from India - the main force was from the Bombay component of the army in India.

In a similar vein, the MTA Staten Island line is completely disconnected from all lines in the 5 Boroughs of NYC. I imagine that at one time there might have been a link to the (now) freight lines that cross from New Jersey via the Arthur Kill Vertical Lift bridge, but the nearest points on the surviving two arms of that network are both nearly 5Km from the MTA line.

Staten Island - the Borough of Richmond - is part of New York City, but is substantially separate, and distinct, from the the other 4 Boroughs - quite apart from not being served by the Subway. What I still think of the Staten Island Rapid Transit was for many years leased by the Baltimore & Ohio RR, and was substantially a system of two distinct parts: the 'mainline' from St George (the ferry terminal, for travel on to Manhattan and Brooklyn) south to Tottenville, which survives as the Staten Island Railway, now a subsidiary of the NY Metropolitan Transportation Authority and operated by Subway type trains, and the North Shore line, running west from St George along the North Coast and across into New Jersey for connections to the rest of the US railroad system: the electrified passenger service as far as Arlington was withdrawn in 1953, but it remains as a freight line from NJ, though no longer through to St George.

 

[Angusbswheeler]

Before the civil war in Libya in 2011 a railway was to be built along the coast linking Tripoli and Benghazi with a branch to Sabha in the south. I don't believe it was ever intended to link to the Tunisian railway to the west or Egyptian to the east. Looking on Google Earth you can see that construction commenced from a new port at Al Khums (approx 120km to the east of Tripoli) with a line from the port to a construction facility to the south of Al Khums. This small bit of line is pretty isolated! A freight train can be seen at Al Khums and an engine and separate wagons at the port. I don't think anything has moved for a long time though.

 

[Baxenden Bank]

Before the civil war in Libya in 2011 a railway was to be built along the coast linking Tripoli and Benghazi with a branch to Sabha in the south. I don't believe it was ever intended to link to the Tunisian railway to the west or Egyptian to the east. Looking on Google Earth you can see that construction commenced from a new port at Al Khums (approx 120km to the east of Tripoli) with a line from the port to a construction facility to the south of Al Khums. This small bit of line is pretty isolated! A freight train can be seen at Al Khums and an engine and separate wagons at the port. I don't think anything has moved for a long time though.

Go to 32°49'43.6"N 13°06'41.5"E on Google and click on the label 'DSB IC4 i Libyen', a historical landmark it says!
The link shows a four-car multiple unit.

 

[etr221]

The Italians had built relatively short narrow gauge systems based on Benghazi and Tripoli, that remained separate, which lasted until about 1965.

In WW2 the Egyptian Western Desert line was extended across the border into Libya, but that extension was dismantled after the war.

Another Italian colony with a relatively short narrow gauge line not really going anywhere was Somalia. While it didn't survive WW2, it did I think in the late 1930s gain the distinction of being the first territorial (I was going to say national, but it was only a colony) railway to change from steam to diesel power (which meant a handful of diesel railcars and small locos).

 

[The Pelican]

A guy called Christopher Portway travelled that and other routes in the early 1970s, when it was presumably more doable from a physical and geopolitical point of view - Corner Seat and Double Circuit. Long out of print but might still be available if you search online.

A great travel book on that general route, although with a side trip is Robert Byron's Road to Oxiana- but it isn't railway based. The Man in seat 61 gives a good guide to the Turkey-Iran part at least.

 

[DelW]

There was a very isolated ironstone railway on Raasay, and lines on Steep Holm and Flat Holm in the Bristol Channel. Were there other isolated lines on any other Scottish islands?

Fairly recently there was a narrow gauge line on Mull. It linked the Craignure ferry pier to Torosay Castle, and was built in 1983 purely for tourist use. It was closed in 2011 and dismantled in 2012, as the Castle's opening days were being drastically reduced.

 

[ThirteenArches]

In Northern Norway there is a five mile rail line connecting the Ore mines with the port in Kirkenes (69 degrees north).

I was there just a couple of weeks ago. It's not used at the moment - the mines closed in 2019 I believe - but appears to be intact and, given the climate, not very overgrown. The only bit of rolling stock I saw was this rather odd looking "brake van??". I couldn't get near enough to see if that railed platform by it was part of it or a separate vehicle. The van bit is definitely on wheels though.