Train ferry

A train ferry is a ship designed to carry railway vehicles.

Typically, one level of the ship is fitted with railway tracks, and the ship has a door at the front or rear to give access to the wharves.

The wharf (called a "slip") has a ramp which connect the railway proper to the ship, allowing for the water level to rise and fall with the tides. For an example of a specialized slip to receive railcars see ferry slip.

Contents

1 Examples 1.1 China 1.2 Denmark 1.3 Georgia 1.4 Italy 1.5 New Zealand 1.6 Sweden 1.7 Turkey 1.8 United States 2 Hazards of train ferries

Examples

China

• Zhanjiang, Guangdong and Haikou, Hainan

Denmark

• Rodby - Puttgarten - short cut connecting Germany to Denmark.

• Copenhagen, Denmark and Hamburg, Germany, 6 trains/day

Georgia

• Russia to Georgia bypasses Abkhazia

Italy

• Mainland to Sicily

New Zealand

• North Island to South Island - 4 ferries - proposal to build new South Island terminal to reduce Ferry distance and time.

Sweden

• Malmö, Sweden and Berlin, Germany 1 train/day

Turkey

• Lake Van - will be replaced by railway along lake shore when traffic increases enough.
• Bosphorus - bids called in 2005 to replace with tunnel.

United States

• New York Harbor, transferring freight cars between Jersey City, New Jersey, and Brooklyn, New York, run as needed.

• Frankfurt, Lake Michigan - defunct

Hazards of train ferries

While no train ferries (as far as it is known) have met with disaster at, car ferries such as the Herald of Free Enterprise - which share some of the weakness of train ferries, have met with disaster.

These weaknesses include:

• Trains are loaded at a rather high level, making the ship top heavy.
• The train deck is difficult to compartmentalise, so that sloshing flood water can destabilise the ship.
• The sea doors where the trains go and out are a weakness, even if placed at the rear of the ship.
• The train carriages need to be strongly secured less they break away and roll around.