Railways by type

thumb|upright|Funicular in Baku, Azerbaijan

rail track gauges narrower than standard track gauge (1435 mm, 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)

railway with a toothed rack rail, usually with steep grade and low operating speed

rapid transit railway with the tracks above street level

rail transport system with moderate capacity

cable-hauled mass transit system

Decauville () was a manufacturing company which was founded by Paul Decauville (1846–1922), a French pioneer in industrial railways. Decauville's major innovation was the use of ready-made sections of light, narrow-gauge track fastened to steel sleepers; this track was portable and could be disassembled and transported very easily.

contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders

railway that uses a cable, rope or chain to haul trains

Railway run by a private business entity

railway which relies on adhesion traction to move a train

Water-powered funiculars

thumb|Heeresfeldbahn [[Brigadelok:de: 0-8-0T locomotive from WWI]]

railway that ascends and descends a slope that has a steep grade