Railway General Knowledge.

[EbbwJunction1]

They were all Ministers of Transport?

Yes, they were .... but what then makes them different from each other?

 

[EbbwJunction1]

Okay, I'll give you the answer to the second part of the question, and it's that they were the first Ministers of Transport from their respective political parties.

Eric Campbell Geddes: Conservative, 1919 - 1921
Harry Gosling: Labour, 1924
John Pybus: Liberal, 1931 - 1933
Leslie Hore-Belisha: NatioanlLiberal, 1934 - 1937
John Reith: National Independent, 1940.

It's now an Open Despatch Box for anyone who wants to take it.

 

[Calthrop]

To make possible (allowing for a few breaks of gauge) through rail travel from London to Singapore: what in the way of completely new railway – from where to where -- would need to be inaugurated? (Assume all lines which have existed and functioned in the past, to be fully functional now.)

There’s more than one conceivable way of addressing such an undertaking: the answer sought is; the shortest and easiest to accomplish, new-construction-wise, of such.

 

[theageofthetra]

There is no railway through Cambodia so that would be the biggest gap.

 

[A Challenge]

You don't have to go through Cambodia though...

 

[Calthrop]

There is no railway through Cambodia so that would be the biggest gap.

You're metaphorically "on the right track" here; but can you be a bit more precise?

You don't have to go through Cambodia though...

The option involving Cambodia is the shortest and easiest, though.

 

[Matt Taylor]

The main station in Singapore closed in 2011 along with through services to Malaysia, the line now terminates at Woodlands checkpoint so you don't actually transit into Singapore until after you have left the train and passed customs!

 

[Calthrop]

Question pertains, if you like, to an "ideal world" where political and kindred factors have not caused suspension of services on lines which have existed and run in better times; and where there is sufficient harmony between neighbouring countries, for proper rail passenger links to operate between them. This applies re Malaysia / Singapore, and also Cambodia / Thailand.

 

[Calthrop]

I feel that it’s time to wrap this one up. The shortest / easiest way of achieving theoretical rail connection Europe – Singapore, would involve closing one rail-less gap which has always existed to date: the beeline 200-odd km. between Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon, Vietnam; and Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Cambodia has ”in principle” national railways, running from Aranyaprathet on the Thai border, to Phnom Penh and thence to the coast at Kampong Saom; their running has suffered assorted disruption over the past few decades, and at present I believe they are operating fragmentarily if at all – but “they’re there” and could be put back into shape: so saying “there is no railway through Cambodia” is perhaps a bit misleading.

(There are projects locally for rail new building / regeneration, to indeed make a rail link Singapore – rest of world: the necessary totally new trackage east of Phnom Penh to link with Vietnam’s system, is seen as crossing the border at Hoa Lu, a good way north-west of Saigon – somewhat longer than the “beeline” route.)

theageofthetra, you got the closest – indicating a rail gap involving Cambodia: so the floor’s yours.

(The other approach to this matter would involve a new link between the rail systems of the Indian sub-continent, and Myanmar; plus reinstatement of the Japanese wartime Myanmar – Thailand “Death Railway” – involving considerably longer routes and greater labour, than the Vietnam / Cambodia option).

As above, theageofthetra has the floor.

 

[theageofthetra]

On US railroads why were a significant proportion of employees called 'George' ?

 

[Calthrop]

On US railroads why were a significant proportion of employees called 'George' ?

Attendants / porters for sleeping cars -- that facility, originally at least, a monopoly of the Pullman company, founder George Pullman: it became a habit for passengers to borrow the founder's name to address all workers in that capacity, irrespective of their real names. (For many decades, these employees were almost all African-Americans: initially because of the low wages paid by Pullman for the job -- Blacks took what work they could get -- over time, this became a traditional niche for Black staff.)

Open floor if correct.

 

[theageofthetra]

Attendants / porters for sleeping cars -- that facility, originally at least, a monopoly of the Pullman company, founder George Pullman: it became a habit for passengers to borrow the founder's name to address all workers in that capacity, irrespective of their real names. (For many decades, these employees were almost all African-Americans: initially because of the low wages paid by Pullman for the job -- Blacks took what work they could get -- over time, this became a traditional niche for Black staff.)

Open floor if correct.

Absolutely correct. Open floor

 

[Calthrop]

I don't think I've asked this one before. Which was the last country in the world to have in regular everyday commercial service, steam locos of the 4-4-2 "Atlantic" wheel arrangement?

 

[theageofthetra]

India had some which survived into the 70's?

 

[Calthrop]

India had some which survived into the 70's?

Indian Railways got towards modernising / standardising steam (broad gauge especially) relatively early on -- Atlantics into the 70's, I don't think so: at all events -- country which I have in mind, for sure outlasted India Atlantics-wise.

 

[Cowley]

Knowing your love for all things narrow gauge. I reckon it could be somewhere in Africa like perhaps Zimbabwe/Rhodesia?

 

[theageofthetra]

The French & Belgian manufacturers built Atlantics quite late on so it could be one of their former colonies? Mozambique had a decent Cape Gauge steam network until the 80's so possibly there?

 

[Calthrop]

Knowing your love for all things narrow gauge. I reckon it could be somewhere in Africa like perhaps Zimbabwe/Rhodesia?

The French & Belgian manufacturers built Atlantics quite late on so it could be one of their former colonies? Mozambique had a decent Cape Gauge steam network until the 80's so possibly there?

You’re right, gentlemen; the Cape gauge in southern Africa it is; and the country, indeed Mozambique. Said territory’s railways had four 4-4-2 tender locos (built, actually, by Henschel), which worked on Mozambique’s furthest-north sub-system, based on Nampula. Continued to run regularly there until and subsequent to the country’s independence from Portugal in 1975; many years of civil war from shortly thereafter made Mozambique long virtually unvisitable, but it’s understood that the Atlantics continued in service, if sporadically, for a good while in those parts: at least one is still in existence today.

With your naming Mozambique: o seu chão, Senhor theageofthetra.

 

[Cowley]

Interesting. Do we (when I say we I mean someone else obviously) know when they actually lasted until? Are we talking 1980s then?

 

[Calthrop]

Interesting. Do we (when I say we I mean someone else obviously) know when they actually lasted until? Are we talking 1980s then?

Hoping that this link may work (I am not clever with this kind of stuff):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4-4-2_(locomotive)

Scroll down to the section headed "Mozambique", which says: "By the 1980s, the last Atlantics at work in the world were a few 3ft. 6in. (1,067mm) Cape gauge examples in Mozambique. These survived reported retirements to operate into the beginning of the 21st century, becoming some of the last working steam in the country."

I realise that something's being stated on Wikipedia is not an iron-clad guarantee of its total accuracy and veracity (and the carrying-on-into-the-21st-century bit, causes me to raise my eyebrows); but the above would tend to suggest that these were the world's last regularly-active examples of the type. It was the opinion of the well-informed quarterly "Continental Railway Journal", which sadly ceased publication a few years ago, that Mozambique's were the last Atlantics in regular service in the world -- i.e. as at the mid-1970s, after which the country sadly descended for many years into "the Seventh Circle under the Pit". I can look back through my collected CRJs, for last mentions of people experiencing Mozambique Atlantics in service; but it would take a bit of time.

 

[theageofthetra]

There are a few European countries which have no railways due to closures. Which country though never had one?

 

[krus_aragon]

There are a few European countries which have no railways due to closures. Which country though never had one?

I doubt the Vatican City ever had one.

 

[EM2]

I doubt the Vatican City ever had one.

Afraid so!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rail_transport_in_Vatican_City

 

[A Challenge]

San Marino?

I thought that Vatican City was so likely to be correct, but I'll post it now!

 

[EM2]

There are a few European countries which have no railways due to closures. Which country though never had one?

The Faroe Islands never has, although that's part of Denmark (like Wales is part of the UK).
Iceland only ever had industrial and farm railways, although the railway for the building of the harbour was of a reasonable length.
So, I'm going for Andorra.

 

[EbbwJunction1]

My first reaction was Gibraltar, as I hadn't heard of any railways there.

However, Wikipedia says: "There are no extant railways in Gibraltar. There was formerly an extensive railway within the Gibraltar Dockyard, and neighbouring works and storage facilities. It included tunnels, one of which went through the Rock of Gibraltar, and is still in use today as a road tunnel. At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries there was also a temporary industrial railway in Gibraltar. At the period when both railways were operational, it was possible to travel right round the entire coastline of Gibraltar by train. The dockyard railway had a roster of 17 locomotives, distinguished by numbers, but four of which also carried names: Gibraltar, Catalan, Rosia, and Calpe."

Now, this says that I'm wrong, but I can't see whether this was just a private system around the dockyard only, or was it a public system as well? If it was the former, does this qualify?

 

[theageofthetra]

The Faroe Islands never has, although that's part of Denmark (like Wales is part of the UK).
Iceland only ever had industrial and farm railways, although the railway for the building of the harbour was of a reasonable length.
So, I'm going for Andorra.

Andorra is correct, although a railway on the French side does come very close.

San Marino did have an odd little cable hauled system.

Your landlocked principality.

 

[EM2]

I've not played this game for so long, I have no idea what has already been asked so I'll declare an open floor.

 

[Joseph_Locke]

Shall I?

Identify the odd one out and explain why:

1970, 1432, 1391, 1625, 41 and 108.

 

[Cowley]

Shall I?

Identify the odd one out and explain why:

1970, 1432, 1391, 1625, 41 and 108.

This one has been on here a while and I don't know the answer but I'll have a guess that they're all locos owned by the GWR but only 1432 was actually built by them?