So-called "track motor cars," railroad rolling stock built on motor-vehicle chassis, are as old as road vehicles. Struggling local railroads frequently hacked them together so that they could transport work crews or haul mail without the expense of running a steam locomotove.

Perhaps the most interesting of these was the Rio Grande and Southern "Galloping Goose." Actually, there were eight Geese, all different, at various times in the history of that railroad. The history of the Geese is sketched out here.

A larger photo gallery is here, where you can see that some of the Geese were unholy hybrids of car, train, bus and semitrailer: Link (image below)




They were perhaps the oddest piece of railroad rolling stock ever built.

Lots of track motor cars leave the road tires on and jack the steel wheels out of the way when leaving the rails. Here's one in use in Alaska: Link

Triple Crown has a line of semitrailers with rail bogies that regularly ride the Norfolk Southern: Link

You might also be amused by the Railbike: Link

posted by David Pescovitz at 08:04:44 PM permalink | Other blogs' comments