How does a locomotive train change tracks?

Question

I know that there is sytem by which alignment of tracks is changed from main track to side tracks to start the deviation process. but the engine does not have a steering mechanism. then how does it change track?

Answer 1

it isnt a sudden change at switch it is a gradual turn, and actually locomotives do have a little give in the wheels

Answer 2

to simply put it.......the engines follow the track for whichever way they are lined.  You are right, there isn't a steering wheel.  All the engineer is doing is modulating the speed of the train by making it go faster by more throttle, or making it slow down or stop with brakes.  The conductor gets off and lines the switches for whichever way they need to go, or the dispatcher can do it in territories that have the proper switches that the dispatcher controls.  Hard to believe for some, but believe it........you don't steer a train.......it just follows the rails of the tracks.

Answer 3

Rails?

Answer 4

The train just follows the two rails.  The track changes shape to tell the train which way to go.  

This page is a little weird because it has some really strange stuff on it that nobody uses anywhere, but also some very good diagrams of regular railway switches (also called turnouts).

http://www.tokyu-car.co.jp/eng/rs/turnou...

The bottom picture, the diagram, is your basic railroad turnout.  The orange parts move, driven by the pink bar, which is connected to a mechanism to throw it and hold it in position.

The second from the last picture is a weird setup for getting lightweight work equipment off the track, notice that the main rails are not broken like in a normal switch, the extra rails kinda flop on top of the main rails.  A regular train couldn't use that.

Ignore the stuff at the top of the page about expansion joints, that's not used hardly anywhere in the world and it only works on slab track ... most railroads use railroad ties in ballast, where you DON'T want expansion joints.  (they'll make the ties move around... bad...)

Answer 5

watch, you'll get the idea.