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Types of Locomotives
Locomotives may generate mechanical work from fuel, or they may take power from an outside source. It is common to classify locomotives by their means of providing motive work - the common ones include:
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Steam locomotive
The first railway locomotives (19th century) were powered by steam, first by burning wood, later coke and coal or petroleum. Because of the steam engine, some people took to calling the steam locomotives themselves "steam engines". The steam locomotive remained by far the most common type of locomotive until after World War II. The age of steam correlates highly to the coal era.
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Diesel locomotive
Diesel locomotives vary in the form of transmission used to convey the power from a diesel engine (or engines) to the wheels. The most simple form of transmission is by means of a gearbox, in the same way as on road vehicles.
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Electric locomotive
An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electric motors which draws current from an overhead wire, a third rail, or an on-board storage device such as a battery or a flywheel energy storage system.
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Historic Rail lines
Heritage railways are usually railway lines which were once run as commercial railways, but were later no longer needed, or were closed down, and were taken over or re-opened by volunteers or for-profit organizations. They are not primarily focused on providing local transportation - although they often do - but on serving tourist and leisure market.
Typically a heritage railway will use steam locomotives and old-fashioned rolling stock to create a period atmosphere, although some are now concentrating on more recent "modern image" diesel and electric traction to re-create the post-steam railway era.
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Trans-Siberian Railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway or Trans-Siberian Railroad (in Russian, or Transsibirskaya magistral', Transsib) is a network of railways connecting European Russia with Russian Far East provinces, Mongolia and China.
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Orient Express
Orient Express is the name of a long-distance passenger train originally operated by the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits. Its route has changed many times, and several routes have in the past concurrently used the name. Although the original Orient Express was simply a regular international railway service, the name has become synonymous with luxury travel.
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20th Century Limited
The 20th Century Limited was an express passenger train operated by the New York Central Railroad from 1902 to 1967, during which time it would become known as a "National Institution" and the "Most Famous Train in the World." In the year of its last run, The New York Times said that it "...was known to railroad buffs for 65 years as the world's greatest train."
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A locomotive (from lat. locus motivus) is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train, and has no payload capacity of its own; its sole purpose is to move the train along the tracks. In contrast, many trains feature self-propelled payload-carrying vehicles; these are not normally considered locomotives, and
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may be referred to as multiple units or railcars; the use of these self-propelled vehicles is increasingly common for passenger trains, but very rare for freight (see however CargoSprinter). Vehicles which provide the motive power to haul an unpowered train, but are not generally considered locomotives because they have payload space or are rarely detached from their trains, are known as power cars.
Traditionally, locomotives haul (pull) their trains. Increasingly common these days in local passenger service is push-pull operation, where a locomotive pulls the train in one direction and pushes it in the other, and is therefore optionally controlled from a control cab at the opposite end of the train.
Locomotives may generate mechanical work from fuel, or they may take power from an outside source.
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