A
train is a form of
rail transport consisting of a series of
vehicles that usually runs along a
rail track to transport
cargo or
passengers. Motive power is provided by a separate
locomotive or individual motors in self-propelled
multiple units. Although historically
steam propulsion dominated, the most common modern forms are
diesel and
electric locomotives, the latter supplied by
overhead wires or
additional rails. Other energy sources include
horses,
engine or water-driven rope or wire winch,
gravity,
pneumatics,
batteries, and
gas turbines. Train tracks usually consist of two running
rails, sometimes supplemented by additional rails such as
electric conducting rails and
rack rails, with a limited number of
monorails and
maglev guideways in the mix. The word 'train' comes from the
Old French trahiner, from the
Latin trahere 'pull, draw'.