Editing Loading gauge (section)

==History==
The loading gauge on the main lines of Great Britain, most of which were built before 1900, is generally smaller than in other countries. In mainland Europe, the slightly larger [[Berne gauge]] (Gabarit passe-partout international, PPI) was agreed to in 1913 and came into force in 1914.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.crowsnest.co.uk/gauge.htm|title=European Loading Gauges|website=www.crowsnest.co.uk|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100213091359/http://www.crowsnest.co.uk/gauge.htm|archive-date=13 February 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
  |author=Douglas Self 
  |author-link=Douglas Self 
  |url=http://www.douglas-self.com/MUSEUM/LOCOLOCO/loadgauge/loadgauge.htm|title=A Word on Loading Gauges
  |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303201424/http://www.aqpl43.dsl.pipex.com/MUSEUM/LOCOLOCO/loadgauge/loadgauge.htm|archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref> As a result, British trains have noticeably and considerably smaller loading gauges and, for passenger trains, smaller interiors, despite the track being [[standard gauge]], which is in line with much of the world.

This often results in increased costs for purchasing new trainsets or locomotives as they must be specifically designed for the existing British network, rather than being purchased "off-the-shelf". For example, the new trains for [[HS2]] have a 50% premium applied to the "classic compatible" sets that will be "compatible" with the current (or "classic") rail network loading gauge as well as the HS2 line. The "classic compatible" trainsets will cost £40{{nbsp}}million per trainset whereas the HS2-only stock (built to European loading gauge and only suitable to operate on HS2 lines) will cost £27M per trainset despite the HS2-only stock being physically larger.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/69741/hs2-cost-and-risk-model-report.pdf |page=15 |title=HS2 Cost and Risk Model Report |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020074728/https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/69741/hs2-cost-and-risk-model-report.pdf |archive-date=20 October 2013 }}</ref>

It was recognized even during the nineteenth century that this would pose problems and countries whose railroads had been built or upgraded to a more generous loading gauge pressed for neighboring countries to upgrade their own standards. This was particularly true in continental Europe where the Nordic countries and Germany with their relatively generous loading gauge wanted their cars and locomotives to be able to run throughout the [[Standard-gauge railway|standard gauge]] network without being limited to a small size. France, which at the time had the most restrictive loading gauge ultimately compromised giving rise to [[Berne gauge]] which came into effect just before World War I.

[[Military railways]] were often built to particularly high standards, especially after the [[American Civil War]] and the [[Franco-Prussian War]] showed the importance of railroads in [[military deployment]] as well as [[mobilization]]. The [[German Empire|Kaiserreich]] was particularly active in the construction of military railways which were often built with great expense to be as flat, straight and permissive in loading gauge as possible while bypassing major urban areas, making those lines of little use to civilian traffic, particularly civilian passenger traffic. However, all those aforementioned factors have in some cases led to the subsequent abandoning of those railroads.