Boltar wrote:
As I was sitting on the DLR the other day with the train squeeling its
way round
yet another sharp curve, it suddenly struck me - why did they use
standard gauge
track? Surely a narrow gauge would be far better suited to the tight
curves on the line?
Its not as if they'd have had any trouble procuring equipment for
narrow gauge
since plenty of light rail narrow gauge systems operate in europe. And
the DLR
is completely self contained with no physical links to any other
railway so thats
not a concern. Anyone know why they didn't use say metre gauge?

B2003

Back in October I asked a more general question about railway guages
concerning the cost advantage for 3ft 6in or metre gauge and whether
this could make light rail, for example, more affordable.

http://groups.google.com/group/uk.ra...03 614b6c9cd9

I also wondered whether rural lines might be better relaid in narrow
guage or railways such as the Waverley route be reinstated for less
cost.

I got quite a few replies most informing me that there were absolutely
no cost advantages for the narrower guages and that my suggestions were
a complete waste of time.

Of course, this still begs the question as to why so much of the World
has railways with narrower guage than standard?

Surely, someone must have thought it was a good idea at the time but
why?