Historically, wagons have been designed according to the American Association of Railroads specifications. These require that wagons be designed to withstand a static load between the couplers of 350 tons. This implies that the structure has a certain stiffness. In order to improve load to tare ratio, there has been talk of reducing the end load specifications. This implies that the stiffness of the wagon will reduce. Using more flexible wagons implies that the freight will probably be exposed to a harsher dynamic environment. There is a trade off between the cost of packaging and the cost of protection devices installed in the vehicle. If handling damage can be prevented then an understanding of the dynamic environment will assist in reducing the packaging requirement. This research looked at the dynamic characteristics of an existing design of wagon using modal analysis. The results from the modal analysis were extended to be inputs to the time domain freight model. Various analytical models of the freight were developed depending on the configuration and dynamic properties. Special consideration was given to a cylinder with its axis transverse to the wagon. The modal model was modified to accommodate the change in mass imposed by the freight. The various sources of dynamic excitation were explored, namely inputs from the coupler and from the bogie. Data from shunting yard simulations were used to generate spectra as input to the wagon model. The objective was to use modal techniques to be able to take individual components, form them into a complete model and make informed decisions about the suitability of a certain configuration for traffic. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

In the early 1920s, discontent about freight rates led to a number of major political battles. Statistical analysis and a review of contemporary reports suggest that the economic importance of these issues was greatly exaggerated. They were blamed for problems which were mainly attributable to such factors as the world-wide recession, the movement of the terms of trade against agricultural producers or the trend towards industrial concentration. / Examination of official documents and private papers indicates that government policy-making on freight rates was influenced by political priorities (especially winning back the West), lobbying by affected interests and the opinions of strong-minded individuals. The King Government intervened in the question of railway rates, but its procrastination, obfuscation and reversals of policy reduced the political credit it received for the concessions it decided to make. Its abortive initiatives on lake and ocean rates were empty political gestures, made out of ignorance of the economics of these complex issues.

This thesis focuses on the former Nickel Plate railroad roundhouse located in Frankfort, Indiana. The building is in danger of demolition by neglect and was listed on Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana's Top Ten Most Endangered Sites list in January 2004. In order to suggest realistic adaptive reuse options for the building, a number of elements were researched. The study includes information pertaining to the history of the railroad in the United States and Indiana, followed by specific information on roundhouses, the history of Frankfort and its role in the railroad community, a study of the Frankfort roundhouse itself, and examples of successful roundhouse adaptive reuse across the country. Various problems that would inhibit the efforts of a preservation group are explored, and suggestions for the building's future are made based on the author's knowledge of the subject. / Department of Architecture

The study sought to investigate infrastructure development in economic crisis and recovery, with specific regard to the rail cargo sector in Zimbabwe since 2000. The research was prompted by firstly, the need to assess the current situation of the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ), secondly, to examine the root cause of the challenges being faced by the National Railways of Zimbabwe and lastly, to review the plans going forward to resolve the challenges. In the study, a sample of 17 respondents was selected. Questions were used to guide the interview schedule. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews and was presented and analysed using thematic analysis. The findings were then interpreted in relation to research objectives and questions. The research findings showed that most of the challenges that were being experienced by the National Railways of Zimbabwe were as a result of the economic meltdown of the Zimbabwean economy. It is evident from the findings that the rail cargo in Zimbabwe can be improved if the parastatal can be given autonomy to run the day to day operations without political interference from the government. The results further suggest that the National Railways of Zimbabwe can be in a position to breakeven or become financially viable if the government, who is the major shareholder, opens up lines or credit and helps secure strategic partners who will bring in capital. In light of the above findings, the study recommends that the government explore more private sector participation and private concession options as this will help the National Railways of Zimbabwe improve its current challenges. Secondly, the 1997 Railway Act has to be signed and officialised so as to enable the organisation to operate commercially. Thirdly, the staff composition and the election of the Board of Directors should be revisited so as to engage to stakeholders in promoting transparency, integrity and efficiency. Lastly, the National Railways of Zimbabwe needs to revive its Railway Motor Services Private Limited because it will help the organisation to cut down on competition from the road sector. / Thesis (M.Dev.Studies)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2014.

Our main objective in this thesis is to investigate three methods: Principal Component Analysis, Vector Space Model, and Signal Analysis, to establish system behaviours of an electromechanical system based on its historical operation data. The system behaviours are constituted by an aggregate number of similar actions which can be represented as patterns or clusters. The results show that we are also able to observe normal behaviours by interpreting a high percentage of similar actions inside patterns or clusters. Any deviations from the established normal behaviours could be interpreted as abnormal which warrant further investigation with respect to fault pre-emption and detection.

The object of this thesis is to examine the contribution of Spanish railways to accelerated economic growth in the period. 1855-1913. Although it has not been estimated, there is reason to believe that there was some growth in the period before the 20th century but, from all accounts, it was constrained by an inefficient, highly seasonal and costly road transportation system. The contribution of railways will be assessed in three ways, First, by estimating the cost of the non-construction of the railway network through an estimate of the social savings. This estimate suggested that the contribution cf railways accounted for 12 per cent of Spain's national income in 1878 and 23 per cent in 1912. I/hen the full employment assumption embodied in these calculations is released, social savings diminished to the 'plausible' level of 7.5 per cent in 1878. Second, as consumers of iron and steel, railways had little linkage effects on the iron industry because they imported the bulk of the iron required to lay down the network. The implications of an alternative policy which protected the local iron industry from the begiiining of railway expansion are treated at length. Railways had, on the other hand, important feedback effects upon the domestic coal production and one fifth of the coal mined in Spain was consumed by railways. Thirdly, connections between railways and the spread of the market reveal that they were a fundamental factor in the integration of the home market. Railways carried increasing volumes of grain, flour, wine and coal consumed in Spain.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Wollongong, 2004. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: leaf 238-250.

Diss. (sammanfattning) Stockholm : Karolinska institutet, 2007. / Härtill 4 uppsatser.

Thesis (M.Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Växjö University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 419-434).