The vast majority of North American railroads are standard gauge (). Exceptions include some streetcar, subway and rapid transit systems, mining and tunneling operations, and some narrow-gauge lines particularly in the west, e.g. the isolated

White Pass and Yukon Route The White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&Y, WP&YR) is a Canadian and U.S. Class III narrow-gauge railroad linking the port of Skagway, Alaska, with Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon. An isolated system, it has no direct connection to any other rai ...

system, and the former

Newfoundland Railway The Newfoundland Railway operated on the island of Newfoundland from 1898 to 1988. With a total track length of , it was the longest narrow-gauge railway system in North America. Early construction ] In 1880, a committee of the Newfoundland Leg ...

. As well as the usual reasons for having one track gauge, gauge i.e. being able to operate through trains without transfer arrangements, the North American continent-wide system of freight car interchange with rolling stock having the same standard gauge, couplings, and air brakes meant that individual companies could minimise their rolling stock requirements by borrowing from other companies. Peak demand periods varied over the continent, with seasonal requirements e.g. for grain shipments occurring at different times in different areas so that freight cars could be redistributed to cover peaks as required.

Barbados

The

Barbados Railway The Barbados Railway was a -long narrow-gauge railway on Barbados with a gauge of initially 1,067 mm (3 feet 6 inch) and later 762 mm (2 feet 6 inch). It had 98 bridges, very tight radii and a steep incline. It was used from 1883 to ...

, the only railroad operated on Barbados, was regauged once in its working life from to in 1898.

Bermuda

The Bermuda Railway was standard gauge common carrier that operated from 1931 to 1948.

Canada

The first railroads in Canada in the 1830s were built to and in 1847 the first gauge line was built. After a Royal Commission, in 1851 the broad gauge, called the

Provincial gauge Indian gauge is a broad track gauge of , used in India, Pakistan, western Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Argentina, Chile, and on BART in San Francisco, United States. In North America, it is called Indian Gauge, Provincial, Portland, or Texas gauge. ...

, was adopted by the

Province of Canada The Province of Canada (or the United Province of Canada or the United Canadas) was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham, in the Report on th ...

government as the standard gauge. However, in the 1870s, most Canadian railroads (apart from some narrow-gauge lines) were changed to standard gauge to facilitate interchange with U.S. railroads. The last broad-gauge line closed in 1911. The

Toronto subway The Toronto subway is a rapid transit system serving Toronto and the neighbouring city of Vaughan in Ontario, Canada, operated by the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC). It is a multimodal rail network consisting of three heavy-capacity rail ...

and streetcar system are

Toronto-gauge railways Toronto-gauge railways are tram and rapid transit lines built to Toronto gauge, a broad gauge of . This is wider than standard gauge of which is by far the most common track gauge in Canada. The gauge is unique to the Greater Toronto Area and i ...

of .

Guatemala

The railroad system of Guatemala no longer operates, see

Rail transport in Guatemala Guatemala has a network of narrow gauge railroads, passenger and freight trains currently run. History Construction of the first railway in Guatemala commenced in 1877 and the first section began operation in 1880, connecting Puerto San J ...

Mexico

Mexico currently uses standard gauge. ''See''

Rail transport in Mexico Mexico has a freight railway system owned by the national government and operated by various entities under concessions (charters) granted by the national government. The railway system provides freight and passenger service throughout the coun ...

Panama

The

Panama Railroad The Panama Canal Railway ( es, Ferrocarril de Panamá) is a railway line linking the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean in Central America. The route stretches across the Isthmus of Panama from Colón (Atlantic) to Balboa (Pacific, near P ...

was originally as in much of the Southern United States. This gauge was converted to when the line was rebuilt in 2000. Nowadays only the ship handling trains along the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...

, called ''mules'', still have the 150 cm / 5 ft track.

United States

In 1886, the southern railroads agreed to coordinate changing gauge on all their tracks. After considerable debate and planning, most of the southern rail network was converted from gauge to gauge, then the standard of the Pennsylvania Railroad, over two days beginning on May 31, 1886. Over a period of 36 hours, tens of thousands of workers pulled the spikes from the west rail of all the broad-gauge lines in the South, moved them east and spiked them back in place. The new gauge was close enough that standard gauge equipment could run on it without problem. By June 1886, all major railroads in North America were using approximately the same gauge. The final conversion to true standard gauge took place gradually as track was maintained.Southern railfan
/ref> Now, the only broad-gauge rail systems in the United States are isolated

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, and

streetcar 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 a ...

systems as well as some heritage railways and hill railways.

References

External links

''The Ohio Broad Gauge and other fables'' (article)
{{Americas topic, Track gauge in * Rail transportation in North America