Steep grade railway

Such railways may form part of infrastructure provided for use by tourists, or as provision for winter sports.

Again these may be largely tourist oriented, or may be used as part of the local public transport provision.

In practice this affects downhill braking capability before it affects uphill climbing ability, and some mountain railways at the lower end of the steepness spectrum rely on standard adhesion for propulsion, but use special track brakes acting directly on the rails.

A now little used alternative to the rack and pinion railway is the Fell system, in which traction and/or braking wheel are applied to a central rail under pressure.

The cars are permanently attached to the cable, which stops, starts and reverses as required.