A headshunt (or escape track in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

) is a short length of

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

provided to release

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the ...

s at terminal platforms, or to allow

shunting Shunting may refer to: * Ribosome shunting, a mechanism in protein biosynthesis * Shunting (rail), a rail transport operation * Shunting (neurophysiology), a concept in neurophysiology * Shunting (sailing), a maneuver for sailing upwind See a ...

to take place clear of main lines.

Terminal headshunt

A 'terminal headshunt' is a short length of track that allows a locomotive to uncouple from its train, move forward, and then run back past it on a parallel track. Such headshunts are typically installed at a

terminal station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing su ...

to allow the locomotive of an arriving train to move to the opposite end of (in railway parlance, 'run around') its train so that it can then haul the same train out of the station in the other direction (assuming, of course, that it is a locomotive equipped to run in either direction; for locomotives that only operate in one direction, a wye or

turntable A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

needs to be provided to physically turn the engine around, as well as a run-around track).

Reversing headshunt

Found primarily on

metro system Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be ...

light rail networks, and

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...

ways, a 'reversing headshunt' allows certain trains or trams to change direction, even on lines with high traffic flow, whilst others continue through the station. Typically there will be two running lines, one for each direction of travel, and the headshunt will be positioned between the two running lines, linked to both by

points Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Points ...

. Although most trains will pass through the station and continue in the same direction, an individual train may be directed into the reversing headshunt, before exiting onto the other running line, in the opposite direction of travel. This procedure allows a greater frequency of trains on a city-centre section of the line, and reduced frequency on the suburban sections, by allowing certain trains to shuttle back and forth only on the city centre part, using the reversing headshunts to change direction within the flow of trains.

Shunting neck

The term headshunt may also refer to shunting neck or 'shunt spur': a short length of

laid parallel to the main line to allow a train to shunt back into a siding or

rail yard A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of tracks in a rail network for storing, sorting, or loading and unloading rail vehicles and locomotives. Yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock or ...

without occupying the main running-line.

Run round

A run round loop (or run-around loop) is a track arrangement that enables a locomotive to attach to the opposite end of the train. It is commonly used to haul wagons onto a siding, or at a terminal station to prepare for a return journey. This process is known as "running round a train". Although a common procedure for

passenger train A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self p ...

s when the majority of them were locomotive-hauled, the maneuver is now becoming rarer on public service railways. Increased use of

multiple unit A multiple-unit train or simply multiple unit (MU) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined together, which when coupled to another multiple unit can be controlled by a single driver, with multiple-unit train cont ...

and push-pull passenger services avoids the requirement for dedicated track and the need for railway staff to detach and reattach the locomotive at track level. However, on

heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...

s run-round loops are still usually more or less necessary at each end of the running line, partly because train services are usually locomotive-hauled, and partly because the run-round operation gives added interest to visitors. This practice is still very common on Intercity services in

Victoria, Australia Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in ...

. Runaround tracks are used in

freight rail Rail freight transport is the use of railroads and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) hauled ...

service in order to back cars into spurs or to change directions to keep the locomotive at the front of the train for transport. In this case the runaround track must be as long as the longest set of cars that would be pulled. The locomotive leaves the cars on the runaround track or the main line, goes around, and hooks up to the other end of the train. It can then reverse the cars into a spur.

Examples

Stations which used to have run-rounds include: * UK **

Edinburgh Waverley railway station Edinburgh Waverley railway station (also known simply as Waverley; gd, Waverley Dhùn Èideann) is the principal railway station serving Edinburgh, Scotland. It is the second busiest station in Scotland, after Glasgow Central. It is the nort ...

; The terminal platforms of this station featured locomotive release roads between two main platforms, connected by a three-way point to the crossover from each platform line. The same arrangement of a three-way point on a central release road was also installed at the now closed stations : *** Manchester Central. *** Liverpool Exchange. *** Leeds Central. ** St Ives railway station **

Matlock Riverside railway station Matlock Riverside was the terminus of Peak Rail, a preserved steam railway of approximately in length. For many years Peak Rail had planned to run trains into Matlock station, shared with the main line from Derby (the Derwent Valley Line). ...

, now closed **

Birmingham Moor Street Birmingham Moor Street is one of three main railway stations in the city centre of Birmingham, England, along with Birmingham New Street and Birmingham Snow Hill. Today's Moor Street station is a combination of the original station, opened ...

. This station is on a confined site, so to save space the platform lines were equipped with traversers to allow locomotives to run round via the adjacent platform line (platforms 1 & 2) or an adjacent loop (platform 3). **

Withernsea Withernsea is a seaside resort and civil parish in Holderness, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Its white inland lighthouse, rising around above Hull Road, now houses a museum to 1950s actress Kay Kendall, who was born in the town. The ...

, the terminal station on the now closed

Hull and Holderness Railway The Hull and Holderness Railway was a branch line in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England that connected the city of Kingston upon Hull with the seaside resort of Withernsea via the town of Hedon and the villages of Keyingham and Patrington. ...

. At this station, instead of a crossover or points the run round loop was accessed from a

at the end of the platform line and run round loop.1891 1:2,500 OS map showing the layout of Withernsea stationDisused Stations in the UK
There was a similar arrangement at

Ventnor Ventnor () is a seaside resort and civil parish established in the Victorian era on the southeast coast of the Isle of Wight, England, from Newport. It is situated south of St Boniface Down, and built on steep slopes leading down to the sea. ...

and

Bembridge Bembridge is a village and civil parish located on the easternmost point of the Isle of Wight. It had a population of 3,848 according to the 2001 census of the United Kingdom, leading to the implausible claim by some residents that Bembridge ...

railway stations on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Is ...

. File:Withernsea Railway Station.jpg, Turntable and run round loop at Withernsea File:Leeds Central Station geograph-2334667-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg, Leeds Central station showing the release crossovers * Australia **

Murwillumbah railway station The Murwillumbah railway station is a heritage-listed former terminus railway station located on the Murwillumbah line in South Murwillumbah, in the Tweed Shire local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The former railway station i ...

, now closed ** Toronto railway station, New South Wales, now closed **

Cronulla railway station Cronulla railway station is the heritage-listed terminus railway station on the Cronulla line in Cronulla in the Sutherland Shire local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by the NSW Department of Railway ...

, had run-round, but never had locomotives ** Newcastle railway station, New South Wales, now closed; run-round on Platform 1&2, not on Platform 3&4 Stations which still have run-rounds include: * UK **

Weymouth railway station Weymouth railway station is the main railway station serving the town of Weymouth, Dorset, England (the other being Upwey station which is located north of the town centre). The station is the southern terminus of both the South West Main Lin ...

** Fort William railway station **

Morecambe railway station Morecambe is a railway station on the Morecambe Branch Line, which runs between and . The station, situated west of Lancaster, serves the town of Morecambe in Lancashire. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains. The curre ...

** Rowsley South railway station **

Mallaig railway station , symbol_location = gb , symbol = rail , image = Mallaig railway station from The Jacobite 02.jpg , borough = Main Street, Mallaig, Highland , country = Scotland , coordinates = , grid_name = G ...

* Germany **

Hagen Hauptbahnhof Hagen Hauptbahnhof is a railway station serving the city of Hagen in western Germany. It is an important rail hub for the southeastern Ruhr area, offering regional and long distance connections. The station was opened in 1848 as part of the Bergi ...

* Australia (all in regular loco-hauled passenger use unless otherwise indicated) **

Central railway station, Sydney Central is a heritage-listed railway station located in the centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The station is the largest and busiest railway station in Australia and serves as a major transport interchange for NSW TrainLink inter ...

Albury railway station Albury railway station is a heritage-listed railway station at Railway Place, Albury, New South Wales, Australia, adjacent to the border with Victoria, in Australia. It was designed under the direction of John Whitton and built from 1880 to 18 ...

Canberra railway station Canberra railway station is located on thNSW TrainLink Regional Southern Linein the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. It is located in the Canberra suburb of Kingston. History In March 1913, work began on a new 8.5 kilometre rail link ...

(run-around not in regular use) **

Southern Cross railway station Southern Cross railway station (until 2005 known as Spencer Street station) is a major railway station in Docklands, Melbourne. It is on Spencer Street, between Collins and La Trobe Streets, at the western edge of the Melbourne central bu ...

(Melbourne) **

Shepparton railway station Shepparton railway station is located on the Tocumwal line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the city of Shepparton, and it opened on 13 January 1880.

Bairnsdale railway station Bairnsdale railway station is the terminus of the Gippsland line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the city of Bairnsdale, and it opened on 8 May 1888.

Geelong railway station Geelong railway station is located on the Warrnambool line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the city of Geelong, and it opened on 1 November 1856.

** South Geelong railway station **

Marshall railway station Marshall railway station is located on the Warrnambool line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the southern Geelong suburb of Marshall, and opened on 26 April 2005.

Warrnambool railway station Warrnambool railway station is the terminus of the Warrnambool line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the city of Warrnambool, and it opened on 4 February 1890.

Swan Hill railway station Swan Hill railway station is located on the Piangil line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the town of Swan Hill, and it opened on 30 May 1890.

** Seymour railway station **

Roma Street railway station Roma Street railway station is located in the Brisbane central business district, Queensland, Australia. It is the junction station for the North Coast, Main, Gold Coast and NSW North Coast lines. The station is one of four inner city stat ...

(Brisbane) (not sure if run-around in use) ** Toowoomba railway station **

Charleville railway station Charleville railway station is a station on the Cork to Dublin Railway line. It is located a mile outside the town of Charleville mostly in North County Cork, Ireland though the border with County Limerick, Ireland crosses the track alig ...

Rockhampton railway station Rockhampton railway station is located on the North Coast line in Queensland, Australia. It serves the city of Rockhampton. It is the terminus of the electrified section of line from Brisbane. The line north of the station runs along the mid ...

Longreach railway station Longreach railway station is the terminus station of the Central Western line, serving the town of Longreach, Longreach Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the Landsborough Highway. It was built from 1887 to 1917. It was added to the Qu ...

Townsville railway station Townsville railway station is located on the North Coast railway line, Queensland, North Coast line in Queensland, Australia. It serves the city of Townsville. The station has one platform. Opposite the platform lies a passing loop. It is also ...

** Mount Isa railway station ** Cairns railway station **

Kuranda railway station Kuranda may refer to: Places * Kuranda, Queensland, a town on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland, Australia ** Kuranda Butterfly Farm, the Australian Butterfly Sanctuary, situated in the centre of Kuranda Village ** Kuranda Fig Tree A ...

Adelaide Parklands Terminal Adelaide Parklands Terminal, formerly known as Keswick Terminal, is the interstate passenger railway station in Adelaide, South Australia. It is the only station in the world where passengers can board trains on both north-south and east-west ...

Public Transport Centre The Public Transport Centre (formerly known as the Westrail Centre) is a terminal and administration building for public transport in Perth, Western Australia. It is the centerpiece of East Perth Terminal (formerly known as Perth Terminal), a ...

(East Perth terminal) ** Darwin railway station

No loop

If a terminal station does not have a run-round loop trains are restricted to multiple units or

Top and Tail A top-and-tail railway train has locomotives at both ends, for ease of changing direction, especially where the terminal station has no run-round loop. This is a British term. It is normal for only the leading locomotive to power the train when ...

trains.

References

{{Rail tracks Railway sidings