Urban rail transit is an all-encompassing term for various types of local rail systems serving urban or older suburban areas. The vast majority of modern urban rail vehicles run on electricity. The set of urban rail systems can be roughly subdivided into four categories, which sometimes overlap, causing some systems or lines to have aspects of each. Look up urban in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... It has been suggested that Suburbia be merged into this article or section. ... Electricity is a general term applied to phenomena involving a fundamental property of matter called an electric charge. ...

• Trams are systems that runs mainly or completely along streets, with low capacity and frequent stops. Passengers usually board at street- or kerb-level (but low-floor trams and level boarding platforms may be used). These can be called trams, streetcars, or trolleys, while the longer-distance lines which have now mostly vanished were called interurbans or radial railways.
• Light rail is a relatively new term, as an outgrowth of trams/streetcars. Speeds are usually higher, and articulated vehicles may be used to increase capacity. Note that some systems called light rail have most or all of the characteristics of rapid transit (see below) and may be better placed in that category, while others are essentially trams referred to as light rail for political reasons.
• Rapid transit typically runs grade-separated from all intersecting roads, in tunnels or on elevated structures, or in open cuts in outlying areas. Trains typically run faster than light railways, and stops are less frequent. Platforms are usually level with the typically high floors of the trains, and trains can reach ten or more cars in length (with multiple-unit operation), providing more capacity than light rail at higher headways. Electricity is usually provided by a third rail, though overhead wires are sometimes used, particularly by systems such as the Tyne and Wear Metro which run extensively above ground. Fares are collected before boarding, and usually proof of payment is required to even enter a station's platforms. Systems of this type can be called metros, subways, undergrounds, elevated railways, or sometimes heavy rail, though this term is more commonly used to refer to mainline and regional railways (see below).
• Monorail is a metro or railroad with a track consisting of a single rail (actually a beam), as opposed to the traditional track with two parallel rails. Monorail vehicles are wider than the beam they run on.

Terms typically used for one type of system are sometimes used for the other. For example, Boston's Green Line is referred to as a subway, despite having street-running portions. The Docklands Light Railway in London is a predominantly-elevated system which provides a metro-style service with more in common with the rapid transit definition above than that of light rail; it is so named to distinguish it from the London Underground, which uses longer trains of heavier vehicles to provide more frequent service. A modern tram in the Töölö district of Helsinki, Finland Volkswagen Cargo-Tram in Dresden. ... Passenger door of a low-floor tram Passenger door of a non-low-floor tram In public transportation, low floor is a term describing vehicles such as busses, trolleybusses and trams whose passenger compartment has a floor which is considerably lower than that of traditional cars. ... An interurban streetcar line or interurban, also called a radial railway in Canada, is a streetcar line running between urban areas. ... This article is about light rail systems in general. ... Metro and Subway redirect here. ... A classic Belgian multiple unit of type 74 A multiple unit is a passenger train whose carriages have their own motors, either diesel (DMUs) or electric (EMUs), and do not need to be hauled by a locomotive. ... Third rail at the West Falls Church Metro stop in the Washington, D.C. area, electrified to 750 volts. ... The Tyne and Wear Metro is a light rail metro system in and around Newcastle, in the Tyne and Wear county of north-east England. ... The Walt Disney World Monorail A monorail is a metro or railroad with a track consisting of a single rail (actually a beam), as opposed to the traditional track with two parallel rails. ... Metro and Subway redirect here. ... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ... track Railroad or railway tracks are used on railways, which, together with railroad switches (points), guide trains without the need for steering. ... Alternative meanings: Boston (disambiguation) The 18th-century Old State House in Boston is surrounded by tall buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries. ... A Boston College-bound (B line) Type 8 (Breda) Green Line car at Boston University. ... The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is a light rail public transport metro for the redeveloped Docklands area of eastern London, England. ... The clock tower of the Palace of Westminster, which contains Big Ben London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. ... Slight modifications to the famous London Underground roundel indicate the name of each station on platform and some outdoor signs. ...

Many cities use names such as subway and elevated railway to describe their entire systems, even when they combine both methods of operation; slightly less than half of the London Underground's tracks, for example, are actually underground, while the Chicago El and Vancouver SkyTrain use tunnels to run through central areas. Slight modifications to the famous London Underground roundel indicate the name of each station on platform and some outdoor signs. ... A westbound Chicago L train crosses the south fork of the Chicago River The Chicago L (short for Chicago Elevated) is an urban rapid transit metro serving Chicago and eight of its adjacent suburbs. ... The platform at Metrotown Station in Burnaby is one of the busiest in the SkyTrain system. ...

Other types of passenger rail include the following:

• Funiculars are inclined railways that carry passengers up and down steep slopes.
• Regional rail or commuter rail runs on trackage often shared with intercity rail and freight trains, typically serving newer suburbs and rural areas. Commuter rail trains are typically built to higher standards, as they run at higher speeds are at risk of more severe crashes. This distinguishes commuter rail from interurbans, which use light-rail vehicles on tracks through lower density areas.

A bus shares many characteristics with light rail, but does not run on rails. Trolleybuses are buses that are powered by overhead wires. Railbuses, vehicles that can travel both on rails and on roads, have been tried experimentally, but are not in common use. The term bus rapid transit is used to refer to various methods of providing faster bus services, but the systems which use it are usually more equivalent to light rail than to rapid transit. Some cities experimenting with guided bus technologies, such as Nancy have chosen to refer to them as 'trams on tyres' and given them tram-like appearances. Angels Flight, Los Angeles, California with gantlet track configuration A funicular, also called funicular railway or inclined railway, inclined plane, or in the United Kingdom a cliff railway, consists of a system of transport in which cables attach to a tram-like vehicle on rails to move it up and... A Connex commuter train stands by the platform in Melbourne, Australia Regional rail systems, or commuter rail systems, usually provide a rail service through a central business district area into suburbs or other locations that draw large numbers of people on a daily basis. ... Inter-city rail services are train services which cover larger distances than commuter trains. ... It has been suggested that Suburbia be merged into this article or section. ... Rural area in Dalarna, Sweden Sheep eating grass in rural Australia Rural areas are sparsely settled places away from the influence of large cities and towns. ... A bus is a large wheeled vehicle, intended to carry numerous persons in addition to the driver. ... An articulated trolleybus in Arnhem A trolleybus (also known as electric bus, trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tram or simply trolley) is a bus powered by two overhead electric wires, from which the bus draws electricity using two trolley poles. ... An electric multiple unit pulling into Tile Hill station; Coventry, England. ... Not to be confused with Railroad car A railcar is a self-propelled rail vehicle designed to transport passengers. ... Silver Line in Boston Bus rapid transit (BRT) is a broad term given to a variety of different transportation systems which attempt to use bus to provide a high-quality service through a set of various improvements to the bus line. ... This article is about light rail systems in general. ... Metro and Subway redirect here. ... Adelaide O-Bahn The guide wheel of a guided bus in Mannheim, Germany Guided buses are buses steered for part or all of their route by some form of external trackway. ... This article is about the city in France named Nancy. ...

For terminology, see passenger rail terminology. Various terms are used for passenger rail lines and equipment. ...