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This is a list of the longest trains in the world. The length of a train may be measured in number of wagons (for bulk loads such as coal and iron ore) or in meters for general freight.

Bulk cargo

• Australia
  • Fortescue Metals Group—32,320 t—iron ore
  • Queensland Railways—coal
  • Rio Tinto—29,500 tonnes of iron ore—2.4 km, three locomotives
  • BHP Billiton Iron ore—up to 312 cars, 37,440 tonnes, over 3 km long, six or seven locomotives including intermediate remote units.

• Brazil
  • Carajás Railway—2.1 km, 23,000 t, plans to be extended^[1]—1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in)

• Mauritania—3 km^[2]—iron ore from Zouérat

• South Africa

General cargo

• United States are limited by air brake capability.

• Canada

• 3658 m - Electronically Controlled Pneumatic Braked (180 wagons) - AAR Standard S-4200.^[3]

• 1800 m—Australia—Parkes–Perth–Adelaide–Darwin—(limited by 1800 m crossing loops)
  • proposed 2009 Parkes–Cootamundra

• 1500 m—Australia—Adelaide–Melbourne–Sydney–Brisbane—(limited by 1500 m crossing loops)

• 1500m - UIC standard double length train ^[4]

• 1000 m—
  • Holland–Germany—trial trains of this length^[5]
  • Germany, trials, up from 750 m and 850 m between Hamburg and Ringsted in Denmark.^[6] (mostly double track, short single track sections. Crossing between 1000 m trains must be avoided on single track)

•   800 m—RVR in East Africa (Kenya–Uganda) to introduce longer trains, which needs longer crossing loops.^[7]

• 750 m—Normal for mainlines in several countries in Europe.

•  750m - UIC standard single length train

• 400 m—New South Wales steam era, where lengths also limited by practical length of crossing loops mechanically operated from signal boxes.

• train lengths and loads on electrified railways, especially lower voltage 3000 V DC and 1500 V DC, are limited by traction power considerations.

Passenger

• India - 24 coaches (say 480m)
• Sweden - 18 coaches (26,7 m each plus two Rc locomotives) - 506 m allowed between Stockholm-Luleå

Special test runs

• BHP Run on 21 June 2001, comprising 682 wagons and hauled by eight 6000Hp General Electric AC6000CW diesel-electric locomotives controlled by a single driver with a total length of 7.353 km on the 275 km iron ore railway to Port Hedland in Western Australia - total weight 99,734 tons ^[8]
• Sishen–Saldanha Run on 26–27 August 1989, comprising 660 railcars, 7.3 km (4.5 miles) long and weighing 69,393 tons, excluding the 16 locomotives (9 50 kV AC electric and 7 diesel-electric).^[9][10].
• Kijfhoek–Breda Run on 19 February 1989, as a test and publicity stunt what would become the longest passenger train in the world. The train was pulled by one 1500 V DC locomotive and had 60 passenger cars, of which only the first 14 cars held actual passengers during the run.^[11]
• Gent–Oostende On 27 April 1991, one electric loco and 70 passenger cars (totalling 1733 m and 2786 ton, excluding locomotive) held a charity run for the Belgian Cancer Fund, thereby exceeding the Dutch record.^[11]
• Union Pacific Run from 8th to 10th January 2009, comprising of 295 container wagons and hauled by nine diesel-electric locomotive spread through the train with a total length of 18,000 feet ( 3.4 miles, 5.4 km ), from a terminal in Texas to Los Angeles. Around 600 double-stacked containers were carried at speeds up to 70mph/112km/hr. ^[12]

See also

• Distributed power—Where operational considerations or economics require it, trains can be made longer if intermediate locomotives are inserted in the train and remotely controlled from the leading locomotive.
• Heaviest trains
• Ideal gauge
• Extreme Trains on the History Channel 2009
• Steepest gradients‎

References