Egyptian Delta Light Railways
Encyclopedia
The Egyptian Delta Light Railways was a gauge Egypt
ian narrow gauge
railway, construction of which began in 1898. The railway consisted of a 1000 kilometres (621.4 mi) (600 mile) network of lines throughout the Nile delta
region, north of Cairo
. The lines were constructed to supplement the standard gauge network, and not all lines were connected. The railways continued to the post-World War 2 era, but no longer exist.
The first locomotives were 35 W. G. Bagnall 4-4-0T locomotives, constructed in 1898; followed by 18 Krauss
2-4-0T and 16 Krauss 0-6-2T in 1900 and 30 Nasmyth, Wilson and Company and North British Locomotive Company
0-6-4T in 1907. Later Bagnall supplied a 2-6-2T which were also supplied to the Kalighat Falta Railway
and the Bankura Damodar Railway in India, where they were known as the Delta class. By 1930 the railways had 129 locomotives. About 50 Sentinel
s were later added to the fleet, and diesel locomotives also first appeared in the 1930's.
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian narrow gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
railway, construction of which began in 1898. The railway consisted of a 1000 kilometres (621.4 mi) (600 mile) network of lines throughout the Nile delta
Nile Delta
The Nile Delta is the delta formed in Northern Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's largest river deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the east, it covers some 240 km of Mediterranean coastline—and is a rich...
region, north of Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
. The lines were constructed to supplement the standard gauge network, and not all lines were connected. The railways continued to the post-World War 2 era, but no longer exist.
The first locomotives were 35 W. G. Bagnall 4-4-0T locomotives, constructed in 1898; followed by 18 Krauss
George Krauss
George, Baron von Krauss was a German industrialist and the founder of the Krauss Locomotive Works in Munich, Germany and Linz, Upper Austria...
2-4-0T and 16 Krauss 0-6-2T in 1900 and 30 Nasmyth, Wilson and Company and North British Locomotive Company
North British Locomotive Company
The North British Locomotive Company was created in 1903 through the merger of three Glasgow locomotive manufacturing companies; Sharp Stewart and Company , Neilson, Reid and Company and Dübs and Company , creating the largest locomotive manufacturing company in Europe.Its main factories were...
0-6-4T in 1907. Later Bagnall supplied a 2-6-2T which were also supplied to the Kalighat Falta Railway
Kalighat Falta Railway
The Kalighat Falta Railway was one of four lines built in the early part of the 20th Century by McLeod & Company, a subsidiary of a London company of managing agents, McLeod Russell & Co. Ltd, to open up undeveloped parts of India, all of them in and around Kolkata. The running of the trains were...
and the Bankura Damodar Railway in India, where they were known as the Delta class. By 1930 the railways had 129 locomotives. About 50 Sentinel
Sentinel Waggon Works
Sentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorries, railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries and locomotives.-Alley & MacLellan, Sentinel Works, Jessie Street Glasgow:...
s were later added to the fleet, and diesel locomotives also first appeared in the 1930's.