Light Railway - Definition - Law Dictionary Home Dictionary Definition light-railway

Definition :

Light Railway. Light railways, on which engines and carriages of eight tons weight or less may be brought upon the rails by any one pair o wheels, and the speed of trains is not to exceed twenty-five miles an hour, could and still can be authorized by the Board of Trade under s. 27 of the (English) Regulation of Railways Act, 1868 (31 & 32 Vict. c. 119).

These powers have been little, if at all, exercised; but the (English) Light Railways Act, 1896 (59 & 60 Vict. c. 48), established a Light Railway Commission for the purpose of authorizing light railways, with special aid from the Treasury in certain circumstances and cases. By the (English) Light Railways Act, 1912 (2 & 3 Geo. 5, c. 19), the powers of the Light Railway Commissioners were continued for five years and several amendments made in the Act of 1896. See also Part V. of the (English) Railways Act, 1921.