Chapter 209 First Railway Project Establishment
In mid-September, personnel from the original Roynes Railway Company arrived in East Africa, and the company's name was changed to East African Railway Company. There were no other general changes in direction.
Chief Engineer Nordin, was hired as a technical advisor to the East African Railways Department.
In October, East African Railway Company personnel studied the terrain data provided by the East African government, and finally Engineer Nordin and his team were invited to participate in the East African government's working meeting on railway construction issues.
"Everyone, this meeting will decide the fate of the future East African Railway. It can be said that once it is established, the future East African Railway will only go along this road. So everyone can speak freely, summarize the actual situation in East Africa, and select the most suitable Regarding the railway standards in East Africa, I would like to ask Mr. Nordin to introduce the situation to you." Prince Constantine set the tone of the meeting.
Engineer Nordin nodded to everyone, then stood up and began to educate everyone about railway-related science. There are a lot of top students with primary school education in the East African government, so this is very necessary.
"...The above are some key points of railway construction, but the topic finally returns to the appropriate selection of railway gauge. There is no unified standard in this regard in all countries in the world. After all, national conditions are different. Everyone can express what they think and don't have to worry about any problems. What a layman?" Engineer Nordin said.
As Ernst's confidant, Sweet was told before the meeting to be the first to put forward opinions, so he was the first to speak: "There is no fixed standard for broad gauge or narrow gauge (the International Union of Railways in 1937 1435mm was established as the standard track gauge in 2016), according to my idea, it is better to just pick the middle number, directly 1500mm."
With the first spokesperson, everyone became relatively active.
Arman said: "I think it would be better to build it bigger. I have taken the train before. In the past, many people were crowded into a small carriage in the army. It was very crowded and the comfort was not good. At that time, I I thought it would be better if the train carriage was bigger and the experience would be better, so I suggested that it be just two meters away. Of course, this is my personal opinion, so don’t be offended if I’m wrong.”
Jarman's statement was recognized by some former Prussian army officials.
"I think it would be good to just use 1435mm. After all, there are many countries using it."
"1435mm sounds awkward. It was originally 4 feet 8.5 inches in the UK. The British like to do this. It just complicates the problem like converting pounds. We in East Africa use the metric system, so it is better to round up the whole number according to the metric system. , which is also convenient for calculation.”
"I don't agree with the 1435mm. Overseas, we Germans are the weaker party. Now Britain and France are the colonial powers. We Germans can develop East Africa, and Britain and France can also develop Africa in the future, and France is now in North Africa and West Africa. The British are sandwiched between us in Somaliland and Cape Town, so I propose that for national defense considerations we should learn from the Russians and not establish unified railway standards with them."
"I also agree with this. We in East Africa do not need to consider the issue of future integration with the world. Africa is not Russia. It connects Europe and Asia. Our connection with other regions in the world relies on maritime transportation. Land and Eurasia connection points It’s a small area in Egypt, and Egypt is still building the Suez Canal. Egypt is a wrestling ground between Britain and France, and I guess we won’t let outsiders get involved.”
“The advantage of wide track is that it can carry a large load and has low technical requirements. The disadvantage is that the load is heavy and the horsepower cannot be increased.
But we don’t pursue speed either. East Africa’s bulk exports are grain and timber, and we don’t have enough of the rest, so I tend to use broad gauge. "
"In my opinion, the railway is big and good. As for the land issue, East Africa is wider and sparsely populated than the Russian capital. It doesn't matter if it takes up more land. The most important thing is that cultivated land in Europe is dense. The railway will affect farmland. We don't have to worry about it in East Africa. At this point, so many grasslands and forests are not used in vain, which is a completely minor problem."
"Generally speaking, this is not a problem, because the wide track is only wider than the width of one seat. In addition to the rails, generally 10-30 meters on both sides of the railway are the railway area, which can be ignored compared with the increase in the track area. "The ones that have an impact are basically tunnels and bridges." Engineer Nordin added, "In terms of safety, wide track can run more smoothly under current technical conditions, but turning depends on the special design of the wheel outer diameter to solve the differential speed problem. Fall! So the track gauge cannot be too wide.”
"Mr. Nordin, this can't be too broad. How can I tell you more specifically?"
“My suggestion is that it should not be more than three meters because there has never been an actual operating railway with such a width.
The British built more than 300 miles of 2140mm gauge railway in 1835 and operated it for a period of time. I have not done in-depth research on locomotives, but with the development of technology over the years, I estimate that it is safer to keep it within three meters.
Moreover, if East Africa adopts a railway gauge of more than two meters, it should be considered unique in the world. This should be called ultra-wide gauge.
However, personally, I think the future of ultra-wide gauge has more potential. The current freight volume in Europe has been increasing, and the development of railways is nothing more than the pursuit of speed and heavy load. direction.
If technical issues such as power can be solved in the future, none of this will be a problem. Based on the current development of technology, I think the possibility is very high. "
Hearing this, the new army commander-in-chief Felix said: "Then I think we should simply use 2500mm as our own standard in East Africa. This way the technology is guaranteed and meets our needs in East Africa. The climate of our East Africa is exactly the opposite of that of Tsarist Russia. But I know that Tsarist Russia is also dominated by grasslands and forests, with different routes leading to the same destination, so our East Africa is more similar to Tsarist Russia in this regard, so there is no problem in using broad gauge.”
Felix's words were also supported by most people. Tsarist Russia was indeed similar to East Africa in terms of geography. There were no forests, grasslands, or frozen soil in East Africa, but there were many swamps in East Africa.
After the final estimate by the East African government and confirmation by Nordin engineers, East Africa finally chose a unique number - 2500mm.
Originally, Ernst was more inclined to the number 1500mm, but what was said at the last meeting also interested Ernst.
It doesn’t matter if you spend more money. The most important thing in building railways is the labor cost. East Africans don’t need to do it themselves anyway, so don’t worry and go ahead and get it done.
The first railway project in East Africa was officially established. Because this railway ends in the first town and is the first railway in East Africa, the name is also directly called "First Railway", but later generations will add the qualifier East Africa in front.
The total length of the First Railway is planned to be 59 kilometers. The station location is a short distance from the First Town and Dar es Salaam. This is the result of taking into account the defense engineering. Of course, the noise of the steam locomotives is also quite loud. Ernst didn't care, but it would be bad if it disturbed Prince Constantine's rest.
Because the First Railway he built was an experimental railway, Ernst was not afraid of making mistakes. If it really didn't work, he could just stop it. It wouldn't be too late then.
At the same time, this meeting also gave Ernst a sense of urgency. Ultra-wide track gauge was a bold and avant-garde concept proposed by Nordin engineers, but the relevant technical reserves must be paid attention to.
In the previous life, the standard railway gauge was actually a path dependence problem. The British were the first to figure it out and export it to the world. Later, it became the standard of many countries. But when it wanted to change it, it would change the entire railway. system, so the cost of changing is too high and it is abandoned.
In the past, some people proposed that the Eurasian trains should adopt an ultra-wide track gauge of more than two meters, which can increase the number of containers, but it can only be a mirror image.
In the time and space Ernst lived in, railways had not been developed for many years. For many countries in the world, they had never even seen it. East Africa would definitely not be able to compare with other countries in terms of steam power.
The first-mover advantage of standard gauge has been determined. If East Africa wants to stand out, it must make its own breakthroughs in technology.
Now Ernst has an ace in his hand that he has not yet used, and that is the Berliner Energemeinschaft - now the world's top company in the field of internal combustion engines. Next year, that is, in 1870, the practical four-stroke internal combustion engine of the Berliner Energemeinschaft will be It will be released according to the arrangement of that year.
Now that the company is relatively free, we need to increase their workload and set up a new department to focus on intensifying research on internal combustion engine applications such as locomotives and automobiles.