Elements of Transport Technology

This chapter presents a description of the principal mechanical and electrical characteristics of a traction vehicle. It also presents the equations that govern its motion to determine its distinctive features, depending on the required performance. In high‐speed trains that encroach and pass through tunnels, it undergoes inside and outside pressure variations and turbulence. In order to reduce these effects, high‐speed rail coaches are internally pressurized and tunnels are built with wider wall clearances compared with traditional lines. Railway rolling stocks equipped with friction braking systems consist of cast iron or synthetic shoes that act on the wheel rims, or through gaskets on disks extending from the wheelset axles. In addition, there exists the braking systems based on mechanical or electrical actions on the wheelsets of tram vehicles, and in some cases on metro and railway carriages. The chapter then presents a derivation for operational speed limits of the train.