dual gauge

{{Hatnote|A comprehensive list of rail gauges around the world is in the article about Track gauge.}}

The rail gauge is the most fundamental specification of a railway. Rail tracks and wheelsets are built within engineering tolerances that allow optimum lateral movement of the wheelsets between the rails. Pairs of rails that become too wide or narrow in gauge will cause derailments, especially if in excess of normal gauge-widening on curves.{{cite book |last=Tratman |first=E.E. Russell |date=1908 |url= https://archive.org/details/railwaytracktrac01trat/page/n9/mode/2up |title=Railway track and track work |publisher=The Engineering News Publishing Co. |edition=3 |location=New York|access-date=8 November 2022 |page=402}}{{refn|group=note|Two-rail track on curves is re-gauged when the gauge is 20 mm over (16 mm on narrow gauge). It is sometimes done by relocating the low (inner) rail to save "spike-killing" the sleeper at the outer end, where lateral loads are greater. In other cases, the sleeper may be slid through by about 70 mm to provide "new" timber for spiking.{{cite book |date=1988 |title=Track Maintenance Guide |publisher=Australian National Railways Commission |location=Adelaide |page=section 12.2}} On dual-gauge turnouts, tolerances are small: only {{convert|8|mm|in|abbr=off}} over gauge and {{convert|2|mm|in|abbr=off}} under.{{cite web |url=https://extranet.artc.com.au/docs/eng/track-civil/workinstruct/pc/ETN-03-01.pdf |title=50kg dual gauge turnouts and gauge separations – construction and maintenance manual |author=|date=2008 |website=Australian Rail Track Corporation |access-date=7 November 2022 }}}}

Given the requirement for gauge to be within very tight limits, when the designed distance between the pair of wheels on a wheelset differs even slightly from that of others on a railway, track must be built to two specific gauges. That is achieved in a variety of ways: most commonly by adding a third rail, more rarely by adding another pair of rails; and rarer still, when three gauges are present, by four rails.

File:Rail baseplate on dual gauge (1435 and 1600 mm) track, South Australian Railways.jpg on dual-gauge track showing the minimum practicable gap between the bases of two rails – about 40 mm (11/2 in) – which determines the minimum difference in gauges possible in a three-rail configuration]]

{{Quote box

|title = Interactive 3D view

|quote = {{Show||

{{big|An interactive 3D view of dual-gauge track components is
[https://inlandrail.com.au/what-is-dual-gauge-track/ here]}}

}}

|align = left

|width = 270px

}}

Dual-gauge track can consist of three rails, sharing one "common" rail; or four rails, with the rails of the narrower gauge lying between those of the broader gauge. In the three-rail configuration, wear and tear of the common rail is greater than with the two other outer rails. In dual gauge lines, turnouts (railroad switches) are more complex than in single-gauge track, and trains must be safely signalled on both of the gauges. Track circuits and mechanical interlocking must also operate on both gauges.{{cite book|title=Farewell narrow gauge |last=Rogers |first=K.C. |date=1969 |location=Adelaide |publisher=Australian Railway Historical Society (SA Division Inc.) |pages=19–22 }}

Multi-gauge track is very often associated with a break-of-gauge station, where rail vehicles or vehicle contents are transferred from one gauge to another. A break of gauge causes delay and increases congestion, especially on single-track lines. Essentially, two trains are required to do what a single train would normally accomplish. When traffic passes mainly in one direction, full wagons taken to the border have to be returned as empties, and a train of empty wagons has to be brought to the break of gauge from the other side to fetch the cargo. Congestion is also caused by unloading and reloading.{{cite book |last=Pratt |first=Edwin A. |date=1912 |title=The state railway muddle in Australia |publisher=John Murray |location=London |via=Internet Archive |page=68 |url=https://archive.org/details/staterailwaymudd00pratrich/page/68/mode/1up |access-date=2022-11-28}}{{cite book |last1=Donovan|first1=Peter Francis|last2=O'Neil|first2=Bernard|last3=Jay|first3=Christopher|date=1991 |title=The long haul: Australian National 1978–1988 |edition=Revised |publisher= Australian National Railways Commission |location=Adelaide |isbn=1875359087}}{{rp|74–75}} The problem is worsened when there is a disparity between the capacity of locomotives and vehicles on the two gauges: typically, one broad-gauge trainload needs three narrow-gauge trains to carry.{{cite journal |last=Chambers |first=T.F. |date=February 1971 |title=The railways and Terowie – their early history and change of pattern over nearly a century |journal=Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin |volume=XXII |issue=400 |page=34 |issn=0005-0105 }}

File:Cross-section of Australian dual-gauge railway track.tif

Constructing dual-gauge track with three rails is possible when the two adjacent rails can be separated at the base by at least the space required by rail fastening hardware such as spikes and or rail clips – typically {{convert|40|mm|in|abbr=off|comma=off}}. If the two gauges are closer than that, four rails must be used. Depending on the rail fasteners used and the weight of rails (heavy rails are bigger), the practicable difference between the two gauges is in the range {{convert|145|mm|in|abbr=off|comma=off}} to {{convert|200|mm|in|abbr=off|comma=off}}.{{cite book |date=1988 |title=Track Maintenance Guide |publisher=Australian National Railways Commission |location=Adelaide |page=section 9.1}}

{{clear}}

File: Cross-section of 4-rail dual-gauge track (standard and metre gauge).png . A 435 mm difference in gauge can also be accommodated in a three-rail configuration.]]

In some places, the dimensions of two gauges needing to be collocated are too close to allow a three-rail configuration – for example:

• {{Track gauge|1000mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1067mm|lk=on|comma=off}} (common in Africa, a legacy respectively of French/Belgian and British railway practice)
• {{Track gauge|1000mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|914mm|lk=on|comma=off}} (common in South America)
• {{Track gauge|1435mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1524mm|lk=on|comma=off}} (common where broad-gauge railways of former satellite states of the Soviet Union meet European or Chinese standard gauge).

In such cases, four rails are needed to provide the dual gauge.

Four rails might also be installed because of other engineering or operational factors, even though three rails would suffice: an example is on the Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme (Somme Bay railway), which combines standard and metre gauge – {{convert|435|mm|in|abbr=off|comma=off}} different, well within the parameters for three rails.

Four rails are necessary where the centre-line of rail vehicles on both tracks must be closely aligned with the centre-line of the track in tunnels or other constricted locations. Such configurations, when they revert back to standard parallel lines as soon as room is available, are termed "gauntlet track" (US: "gantlet track").{{cite web|url=https://www.trains.com/trn/train-basics/ask-trains/gantlet-gauntlet/ |title=Gantlet vs. gauntlet |author= |date=1 February 2011 |website=Trains |publisher=Kalmbach Media|access-date=1 September 2023 }}

Four rails must be placed identically on either side of the central axis of dual-gauge turntables (and six rails on triple-gauge turntables) so that they match the configuration of the fixed rails leading to and from the turntable, regardless of the direction in which the turntable is facing.

{{clear}}

File:Cross-section of Australian triple-gauge track.png and Peterborough, South Australia, before gauge standardisation. The three gauges require the respective gaps between the outer and inner rails to be different, unlike four-rail dual gauge.]]

In rare situations, three different gauges may converge on to a rail yard and triple-gauge track is needed to meet the operational needs of the break-of-gauge station – most commonly where there is insufficient space to do otherwise. Construction and operation of triple-gauge track and its signalling, however, involves immense cost and disruption, and is undertaken when no other alternative is available.{{cite book|title=Making tracks: 46 years in Australian railways |last=Fitch |first=Ronald J. |date=1989 |location= Kenthurst NSW |publisher=Kangaroo Press |page=141 |isbn=0864172702 }}

{{clear}}

The following table shows localities where triple gauge has been necessary.

{{clear}}

File: Beyer, Peacock and Co Gorton Foundry in 1870.jpg was typical of locomotive and rolling stock manufacturers that exported to many countries. This track of four gauges traversed two turntables, requiring the rails to be centralised.]]

Three gauges are the maximum found on operating railway lines and in railway yards, but some rolling stock manufacturers collocate more than three lines in their works, depending on the particular gauges of their customers.

File:Schema rollbocks trucks.PNGs compared to transporter wagons]]

File: Australian National Railways 5-pack freight cars and container loader, Islington freight terminal, 1985.jpg have revolutionised rail, road and sea freight transport. Although mechanisation has sped up handling, moving containers from one train to another because of different rail gauges is costly and inefficient.]]

Transfer of freight and passengers between different gauges does not necessarily involve dual-gauge track: there may simply be two tracks that approach either side of a platform without overlapping. In Australia, 13 break-of-gauge stations existed by 1945 as a result of longstanding interstate rivalries: three different gauges had persisted since the 1850s and the five mainland state capitals were not linked by standard gauge until 1995.{{cite book|title=Australian Railwayman: from cadet engineer to railways commissioner |last=Fitch |first=Ronald J. |date=2006 |location=Dural, New South Wales |publisher=Rosenberg Publishing Pty Ltd |page=168 |isbn=1877058483 }} Huge costs and long delays were imposed by trans-shipment of freight at break-of-gauge stations, whether manually, by gantry crane or by wheelset or bogie exchange.{{rp|67}} During World War II, breaks of gauge in Australia added immense difficulty to the war effort by needing extra locomotives and rolling stock, and more than 1600 service personnel and a large pool of civilians, at transfer points for an annual average transfer of about 1.8 million tonnes of freight.{{cite book |last=Laird |first=Philip |date=2001 |title=Back on track: re-thinking transport policy in Australia and New Zealand |publisher=University of New South Wales Press |location=Sydney |isbn=086840411X |page=187}}

To cost and inefficiency was added, in the case of passengers, considerable inconvenience. In 1896, at Albury station on the Sydney–Melbourne railway, famed American writer Samuel Clemens (Mark Twain) had to change trains in the middle of a "biting-cold" night in 1896 and there formed his pungent view of "the paralysis of intellect that gave that idea birth".{{cite web |url= http://www.online-literature.com/twain/following-the-equator/14/ |title= Following the Equator |first= Mark |last= Twain |date= 2020 |website= The Literature Network|access-date= 27 May 2020 }}

In some locations, an alternative to building long lengths of dual-gauge track has been to change the wheels on rolling stock, either by dropping and changing wheelsets from four-wheeled vehicles or exchanging bogies (US: trucks) under eight-wheeled vehicles. With this arrangement, a short length of dual-gauge track is only needed within the facility. A benefit is that the contents of fully loaded cars are not disturbed. The scheme was first adopted on the French–Spanish border and in Poland. It introduces delay into transit times compared with dual-gauge operation, but is much quicker than trans-shipping: when introduced in 1962 in Melbourne, Australia, on the route between Sydney and Adelaide, the freight handling time per train dropped from five days to less than two. The process involved disconnecting the brake rigging and bogie centre pins have to be disconnected before the vehicle is lifted and new bogies are wheeled underneath.{{cite journal | last=Buckland |first=J.L. |date=October 1962 |title=Bogie changing extends the benefits of standard-gauge |journal=Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin |volume=XIII |issue=300 |pages=161–162 |issn=0005-0105 }}{{refn|group=note|At that time, each transfer took 20 minutes; inspection and marshalling took up the remaining time. In 1982, each of two shifts of 18 men exchanged an average of 66 bogies per day; in comparison, 100 men would have been needed to transfer the same amount of freight wagon to wagon.{{cite book |author=Lee, Robert |title=The Railways of Victoria 1854–2004 |publisher=Melbourne University Publishing Ltd |year=2007 |isbn= 978-0-522-85134-2 |page=224}}}}

In Europe, a similar principle embodies low-profile, small-wheeled transporter wagons, which carry vehicles built for one gauge on a line with a different gauge. A variant is the rollbock (Rollböcke in German), used under two-axle standard-gauge vehicles: each wheelset is carried on a small four-wheeled narrow-gauge trolley.{{cite AV media|date=2015 |title=Harzquerbahn 2015 – Güterverkehr zwischen Unterberg und Nordhausen |trans-title=Freight traffic between Unterberg and Nordhausen |language=|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CBdZdcGpmI |access-date=3 November 2022 |publisher=Schmalspurbahn-Fans }} The entire train is converted in minutes at a slow walking pace, each rollbock being automatically matched to its wheelset from underneath.{{refn|group=note|The principle of attaching narrow-gauge bogies from underneath in this manner had been patented by Robert Henry Ramsey in 1872, in the United States.{{cite web|url=https://www.midcontinent.org/rollingstock/builders/ramseys_cartruck.htm |title=Ramsey's car truck shifting apparatus |author=|date=2007 |website=Mid-Continent Railway Museum |access-date=3 November 2022}}}}

A further variant is "train on train", in which an entire narrow-gauge train is carried on standard-gauge flatcars on which continuous rail has been fitted.{{cite book| title=Uniform railway gauge| first=Eric| last=Harding| publisher=Lothian Publishing| year=1958| page=14}}{{cite book| title=Tales from a Railway Odyssey| authorlink=Keith Smith (engineer)| first=Keith A.| last=Smith| page=114}}{{cite journal |last=Buckland |first=J.L. |date=December 1955 |title=The "pick-a-back" train |journal=Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin |volume=VI |issue=218 |pages=157–162 |issn=0005-0105 }}

Differences in gauge are also accommodated by gauge-adjustable wheelsets, which {{As of|2022|lc=yes}} were installed under some passenger vehicles on international links between Spain and France, Sweden and Finland, Poland and Lithuania, and Poland and Ukraine. In Spain, change-over facilities are extensive, since although {{Track gauge|1668mm|comma=off}} track predominates, and high-speed lines are laid to {{Track gauge|1435mm|comma=off}} standard gauge, there are many lines with narrower gauges ({{Track gauge|1000mm|comma=off}} metre gauge and others).{{cite book|url=https://www.vialibre-ffe.com/pdf/Track_gauge_changeover.pdf|title=Automatic track gauge changeover for trains in Spain|first=Alberto García|last=Álvarez|publisher=Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles|edition=4|date=2010|isbn=978-84-89649-56-9|page=7}}

{{More citations needed section|date=November 2022}}

;Australia{{anchor|Australia}}

In Victoria, there are sections of {{Track gauge|1600mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm|lk=on|comma=off}} dual-gauge track between Southern Cross station and West Footscray, Sunshine and Newport, Albion and Jacana, North Geelong and Gheringhap, Maryborough and Dunolly, and in various goods yards and industrial sidings. Until 2008, there was a dual-gauge line between Wodonga and Bandiana.

At Albury railway station, New South Wales, a {{Track gauge|1600mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} dual-gauge line was in place until 2011. A dual-gauge line was within Tocumwal railway station until 1988, when the standard gauge component was put out of use.

In 1900, in South Australia, a three-rail dual-gauge system was proposed in order to avoid a break of gauge. However, designing turnouts was considered to be difficult due to the difference of only {{convert|165|mm|in|abbr=off}} between the {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} and the {{Track gauge|1600mm |comma=off}} broad gauge. After twenty years, the proposal was abandoned.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article45890361 |title=Personal. |newspaper=The Barrier Miner |location=Broken Hill, NSW |date=3 July 1924 |access-date=1 September 2012 |page=2 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article3739201 |title=Great Western Railway. |newspaper=The Argus |location=Melbourne |date=11 March 1926 |access-date=27 August 2011 |page=7 |publisher=National Library of Australia}}{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article14617972 |title=Unification of gauges. |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=6 May 1904 |access-date=10 March 2014 |page=5 |publisher=National Library of Australia}} Much later, the South Australian Railways successfully adopted dual-gauge turnouts.[http://extranet.artc.com.au/docs/eng/track-civil/workinstruct/pc/ETN-03-01.pdf Civil track engineering] ARTC pdf.

In Western Australia, {{Track gauge|1067mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} of double-track dual-gauge extends for {{Convert|120|km|mi|abbr=on}} of the main line from East Perth to Northam. Dual-gauge track is also used from the triangle at Woodbridge to Cockburn Junction, then to Kwinana on one branch and North Fremantle on the other. The signalling system detects the gauge of the approaching train and puts the signals to stop if the route is set for the wrong gauge.

In Queensland, there is a section of {{Track gauge|1067mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} dual-gauge track between the rail freight yards at Acacia Ridge and Park Road station, which is utilised by both passenger and freight trains. Freight trains to the Port of Brisbane utilise the dual gauge Fisherman Islands line that runs parallel to the Cleveland railway line from Park Road to Lindum. Passenger trains use the dual-gauge section of the Beenleigh railway line running parallel to the electric suburban narrow gauge of the Queensland Rail city network over the Merivale Bridge into platforms 2 and 3 at Roma Street Station. This is used by standard gauge interstate New South Wales TrainLink XPT services to Sydney. In 2012, a dual-gauge line was installed between Acacia Ridge and Bromelton to serve a new freight hub at Bromelton.

The {{convert|1700|km|mi|abbr=off|comma=off}} long Inland Railway, under construction in 2022, will have about {{convert|300|km|mi|abbr=off|comma=off}} of dual gauge.

;Bangladesh

The Bangladesh Railway uses three rails to avoid breaks of gauge between its broad-gauge and metre-gauge lines. The Jamuna Bridge and Padma Bridge, which link the east–west and north–south rail systems respectively, have four-rail dual-gauge tracks. Of the {{convert|2875|km|mi}} Bangladesh Railway system, about {{convert|1600|km|mi}} has four-rail dual-gauge.{{Citation needed|date=March 2023}}{{Dubious|date=March 2023}}

;Belgium

Tram tracks in Brussels once combined {{Track gauge|1000mm|allk=on|comma=off}} lines for inter-urban trams and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} lines for urban trams in a three-rail layout. In 1991, the interurban trams went out of service and then the network used only standard-gauge track.

;Bulgaria

The Sofia tramway uses a mixture of narrow and standard gauge. A {{cvt|2.6|km|mi}} section of track between Krasna polyana depot and Pirotska street is dual-gauge shared by {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} route 22 and {{Track gauge|1009mm|lk=on|comma=off }} route 11.

;Cameroon

The new port of Kribi may serve 1000mm gauge bauxite traffic as well as 1435mm gauge iron ore traffic.

;Czech Republic

In the Czech Republic, there is 2 km of dual gauge {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|760mm }} track near Jindřichův Hradec. In 1985, its original four rails were converted to three rails. In 2004, in Jindřichův Hradec at a switch where a dual gauge railway bifurcates, a Junák express from Plzeň to Brno derailed due to a signalling error. The standard gauge train had been switched on to the narrow gauge track.

;France

The Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme in France is dual gauge between Noyelles-sur-Mer and Saint-Valery-sur-Somme. The line has four rails with metre gauge laid within standard gauge. There are some dual-gauge (standard and Iberian) sidings at Cerbère on the Spanish border.

;Germany

In the 1970s, the Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen tram lines underwent a gauge conversion from {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge to standard gauge. This was part of an upgrade to the Stuttgart Stadtbahn. In 1981, {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} dual-gauge track was constructed so that new DT-8 Stadtbahn cars and old trams could share the network. In 2008, a further gauge conversion was completed. The Stuttgart Straßenbahn Museum operates {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge trams on weekends and special occasions.

In Krefeld on Ostwall, tram lines are dual gauge so that standard {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} Rheinbahn U76 Stadtbahn cars and {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge trams may share the lines. At the north end of the route, at the junction with Rheinstraße, the trams reverse. There, the standard gauge line ends, while the metre gauge lines continue. At the Hauptbahnhof, on Oppumer Straße, dual gauge track continues. At the ends of Oppumer Straße, the two tracks diverge.

In Mülheim there is a similar situation. The Duisburg tram line 901 meets the local line 102. The tram system in Duisburg uses {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} gauge track while the tram route from Witten to Mülheim uses {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge tracks. Two lines share a tunnel section between the Mülheim (Ruhr) Hauptbahnhof and Schloss Broich then diverge at street level.

The tram network between Werne to Bad Honnef is large with various operators and gauges. The trams in Wuppertal used {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} gauge track on east{{ndash}}west lines and {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge track on north{{ndash}}south lines. Trams in Duisburg used {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} gauge track on lines south of the Ruhr and {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge tracks on lines north of the Ruhr. The north lines closed in the 1960s and 1970s. Duisburg's three routes were converted to {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} gauge track.

;Ghana

Ghana is converting its narrow gauge to standard gauge, and is installing dual-gauge sleepers as an intermediate stage.

;Greece

In Greece, the line between Athens and Elefsis (now closed) was dual gauge in order to allow the {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} gauge trains of the Peloponnese rail network to pass. It also allowed standard gauge trains to reach the Elefsis shipyards. In Volos, a short section of track between the main station and the harbour used an unusual triple gauge, to accommodate standard gauge trains from Larissa, metre gauge trains from Kalambaka, and the {{Track gauge|600mm |comma=off}} gauge trains of the Pelion railway.

;Indonesia

In 1899, in the Dutch East Indies, dual gauge track was installed between Yogyakarta and Solo. The track was owned by the Nederlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschappij, a private company, which in 1867 had built the {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} gauge line. The third rail was installed to allow passengers and goods travelling over the {{Track gauge|1067mm|comma=off}} gauge Staatsspoorweg (state railway) a direct connection. At a later date, the government constructed new tracks to allow greater capacity and higher speeds. In 1940, a third rail was installed between Solo and Gundih on the line to Semarang, allowing {{Track gauge|1067mm|comma=off}} gauge trains to travel between Semarang, Solo and Yogyakarta via Gambringan, on the line to Surabaya instead of on the original line via Kedungjati.

In 1942 and 1943 in Java, under Japanese military occupation, conversion took place from {{Track gauge|ussg}} to {{Track gauge|1067mm |comma=off}} on the Brumbung{{ndash}}Kedungjati{{ndash}}Gundih main line and the Kedungjati{{ndash}}Ambarawa branch line.

Until the 1970s, a short section of dual gauge {{Track gauge|1067mm| comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|750mm}} line existed in North Sumatra on a joint line of the Deli Railway and the Atjeh Tram.

Some sugar mill railways in Java have dual-gauge sections.

;Ireland

Ireland's Ulster Railway underwent a gauge conversion from 1880mm to the new Irish standard of {{Track gauge|1600mm|comma=off}}. The Dublin & Drogheda Railway underwent a gauge conversion because the gauges were too close to allow a dual-gauge line.

;Italy

The Potenza {{ndash}} Avigliano Lucania line in Italy is a dual gauge rail with {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|950mm }} tracks.

;Japan

In Japan, the national standard is {{Track gauge|1067mm |comma=off}} narrow gauge. Dual gauge is used where the {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} Shinkansen (bullet train) lines join the main network. For example, part of the Ōu Main Line became part of the Akita Shinkansen and was converted to dual gauge in a limited section. The longest ({{convert|82.1|km|mi|abbr=on}}) dual gauge section in Japan is near, and in, the Seikan Tunnel. Sections of the Hakone Tozan Line are among a number of other dual-gauge lines.

;Mexico

Mexico previously had {{Track gauge|1435mm|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|914mm}} dual gauge track.

;Netherlands

The first railway lines in the Netherlands were constructed with a track gauge of {{Track gauge|1945mm|lk=on|comma=off}}. For the 1939 centennial celebration, an exact replica of the country's first locomotive "De Arend" was built using the original blueprints. Since 1953, the locomotive is housed at the Dutch National Railway Museum, where in recent years, a dual-gauge track has been constructed in the rail yard, allowing for the locomotive to drive back and forth on special occasions.{{cite web |url=https://www.spoorwegmuseum.nl/ontdek/nu-in-het-museum/arend-onder-stoom/ |title=Arend onder Stoom – Het Spoorwegmuseum |website=www.spoorwegmuseum.nl |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200926190317/https://www.spoorwegmuseum.nl/ontdek/nu-in-het-museum/arend-onder-stoom/ |archive-date=2020-09-26}}

;Poland

In Poland, there is {{convert|3|km|mi|abbr=off|1}} of {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|750mm}} dual-gauge track in the Greater Poland Voivodeship, linking Pleszew with a nearby mainline station. It is served by narrow-gauge passenger trains and standard-gauge freight trains.

;Portugal

In Portugal there were sections of dual gauge railways {{cite thesis |last= Nunes Costa |first= Pedro |date= 2016|title= Via algaliada versus mudança de bitola dos eixos do material circulante |url= https://repositorio.ipl.pt/entities/publication/b2d7af6f-78cc-48bc-923f-5d855e17f438|trans-title= |work= |degree= Master|language= pt|location= Lisbon|publisher= Polytechnical University of Lisbon|access-date=}}

In Douro Line with Corgo Line, between Régua railway station and Corgo bifurcation, over a length of 1,100 m. The Corgo Line is currently closed for operation.

In Minho Line between Trofa and Famalicão the meter gauge Guimarães line run inside the 1,668 m iberian gauge in an extension of 10 km. This section has been dismantled in 2004 with the regauging of Guimarães Line and duplication and electrification of the Minho line between Ermesinde and Braga.

;Russia

Between 2008 and 2012, a {{convert|2|km|mi|abbr=on}} dual-gauge cross-border track was rebuilt between Khasan, Russia, and Rajin, North Korea; its gauges were the Russian {{Track gauge|1520mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and Korean {{Track gauge|1435mm|comma=off}}.[http://eng.rzd.ru/newse/public/rzdeng?STRUCTURE_ID=15&layer_id=4839&id=105789 Russian Railways : Demonstration train makes run between Rajin and Khasan] RZD news

Similar arrangements exist on the approach to Kaliningrad, where {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} track extends from the Polish border with some sections of dual gauge.

;Spain

In Spain, there is {{Convert|21.7|km|abbr=on}} of dual gauge in the AVE line from Zaragoza to Huesca, usable for both {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} standard-gauge high-speed trains and {{Track gauge|1668mm|lk=on|comma=off}} Spanish network trains. Some dual-gauge sidings are at Port Bou on the French border. In 2009, Adif called for tenders for the installation of a third rail for standard-gauge trains on the {{convert|22|km|abbr=on}} between Castellbisbal and the Can Tunis freight terminal in Barcelona.{{cite news | url=http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/world-infrastructure-market-march-2009.html | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130131232359/http://www.railwaygazette.com/nc/news/single-view/view/world-infrastructure-market-march-2009.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=31 January 2013 | title=World infrastructure market March 2009 | date=14 March 2009 | work=Railway Gazette International }}

;Sweden

The bridges at the borders of Sweden and Finland, between Haparanda and Tornio have {{convert|2|km|mi|abbr=on}} of dual gauge, {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1524mm |comma=off}} track. At each end of the dual-gauge section are yards with standard and Finnish gauge areas to allow for trans-shipment. Four rails are used because the gauges are close and the bridge structure is wider than normal to allow for the offset from the centreline of each gauge. A Rafil gauge changer is at the Tornio yard.

Between Västervik and Jenny, Sweden, there is a {{Track gauge|891mm}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} dual-gauge line and dual-gauge track in the Västervik station area.

;Switzerland

In Switzerland, dual-gauge {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} track and {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} track exists between Lucerne and Horw of the Zentralbahn, between Niederbipp and Oberbipp of the Oberaargau-Jura Railways and between Chur and Domat/Ems of RhB. All three allow narrow-gauge passenger trains and standard-gauge freight trains to operate. A ″non-stop″ scheme (albeit with a pause to change locomotives) on the Montreux-Interlaken route was inaugurated in December 2022.{{cite magazine|last=Fender|first=Keith|title=Swiss introduce gauge-changing train on Montreaux Interlaken route|date=April 2023|magazine=Trains|publisher=Kalmbach Media|pages=41–42}} The former Zollikofen-Worblaufen-Deisswil dual gauge was cut back to Papiermühle when the factory in Deisswil closed.{{when|date=November 2022}}

;Ukraine

The railway tracks between the border with Slovakia at Solomonovo and the border with Romania at Nevetlenfolu are dual-gauge, {{Track gauge|1520mm|lk=on|comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm|lk=on|comma=off}}. This is in part due to the Austro-Hungarian heritage of the Zakarpattia Oblast, but also has military and political importance, as it allows standard-gauge trains to run between Romania and Slovakia by bypassing Hungary, otherwise impossible due to the break-of -gauge between the Russian-gauge network of Ukraine and standard-gauge networks of Romania and Slovakia.

;United Kingdom

The Great Western Railway in Britain was originally built to a broad gauge of 2134 mm (7 ft 0 in), subsequently widened to 2140 mm (7 ft 0{{frac|1|2}} in). After a "gauge war", the gauge was converted to {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}}. A dual-gauge system was easily installed as the gauges were well separated and the line had wooden sleepers. A short section of broad and standard gauge is at the Great Western Society site at Didcot.

The port authority in Derry, Northern Ireland, used a dual-gauge line in a street-level network to transfer freight. Two of the city's stations were on a narrow {{Track gauge|914mm|lk=on|comma=off}} gauge. The other two city stations were on broad {{Track gauge|1600mm|lk=on|comma=off}} gauge.

The Fairbourne Railway in Gwynedd, Wales, has a section of dual gauge track from Fairbourne station to Car Park crossing installed in the late 2010s to allow visiting {{Track gauge|15in|lk=on}} gauge trains to run on part of the line, which was converted to {{Track gauge|12.25in|lk=on}} gauge in 1986, usually as part of special events.

;United States

In Los Angeles, the {{Track gauge|1067mm|lk=on|comma=off}} Los Angeles Railway and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} Pacific Electric Railway ran on dual gauge track on some downtown streets.{{when|date=November 2022}}

From 1880 to 1902, the Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (standard gauge) and the Burlington and Northwestern Railway (narrow gauge) shared a dual-gauge mainline from Burlington, Iowa, to Mediapolis, {{convert|23|km|mi|abbr=off}} to the north.

The early operational years of the State Belt Railroad in San Francisco featured dual-gauge tracks to accommodate regional railroads of the time, which interchanged via ferry.

Until 1941, the Colorado and Southern Railway used both standard-gauge and narrow-gauge tracks, and had a dual-gauge line between Denver and Golden, Colorado.

Until the 1960s, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad's Alamosa–Durango Line from Alamosa, Colorado, to Antonito was dual-gauge ({{Track gauge|914mm }} and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}}).

Previously, in its yard at Mount Union, Pennsylvania, the East Broad Top Railroad and Coal Company used dual-gauge tracks.

;Vietnam

In Vietnam, near the border with China, there is {{Track gauge|1000mm |comma=off}} and {{Track gauge|1435mm |comma=off}} dual-gauge track between Hanoi and Đồng Đăng. Other smaller dual-gauge sections exist elsewhere in the north-east of the country.[http://www.vr.com.vn/english/hientaihoatdong.html The length of Vietnam railway network] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060910185049/http://www.vr.com.vn/english/hientaihoatdong.html |date=September 10, 2006 }}

{{Portal|Trains}}

{{div col|colwidth=22em}}

• Glossary of rail transport terms
• History of rail transport
• Rail transport
• Rail transport by country
• Tamping machine
• Track gauge conversion

{{div col end}}

{{Reflist|group=note}}

{{notelist-la}}

{{ Reflist}}

• {{cite book |last=Fairlie |first=Robert F. |date=1872 |title=Railways or no railways: narrow gauge v broad gauge |publisher=Effingham Wilson |location=Royal Exchange, London}}
• {{cite book |last=Tratman |first=E.E. Russell |date=1908 |url= https://archive.org/details/railwaytracktrac01trat/page/n9/mode/2up |title=Railway track and track work |publisher=The Engineering News Publishing Co. |edition=3rd |location=New York|access-date=8 November 2022}}

• [https://inlandrail.com.au/what-is-dual-gauge-track/ Interactive 3D model of dual-gauge track]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20061205185702/http://jwr.janes.com/public/jwr/index.shtml Jane's World Railways] (hard copy)
• [http://www.columbusrailroads.com/track%20gauge.htm Dual-gauge streetcar track]
• [http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article100575593 Diagram of mixed gauge turnouts]{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article100575593 |title=Diagram of mixed gauge turnouts |newspaper=The Globe and Sunday Times War Pictorial |issue=272 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=17 June 1916 |page=19 |via=National Library of Australia}}

{{Navbox track gauge}}

{{Rail tracks}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dual Gauge}}

de:Gleis#Mehrschienengleise