Translations:AY Honors/Model Railroad/Answer Key/14/en
Container Car
Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport cargo transport using standard ISO containers known as shipping containers that can be loaded and sealed intact onto container ships, railroad cars, planes, and trucks. The introduction of containers resulted in vast improvements in port handling efficiency, thus lowering costs and helping lower freight charges and, in turn, boosting trade flows. Almost every manufactured product humans consume spends some time in a container.
Flat car
A flatcar (also flat car) is a piece of railroad rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks (US) or bogies (UK). The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads. Flatcars designed for carrying machinery have sliding chain assemblies recessed in the deck. Flatcars are used for loads that are too large or cumbersome to load in enclosed cars such as boxcars. They are also often used to transport containers or trailers in intermodal shipping.
Gondola
A gondola is an open-top type of rolling stock that is used for carrying loose bulk materials. Because of its low side walls, gondolas are used to carry either very dense material, such as steel plates or coils, or bulky items such as prefabricated pieces of rail track.
Refrigerator Car
A refrigerator car (or "reefer") is a refrigerated boxcar, a piece of railroad rolling stock designed to carry perishable freight at specific temperatures. Refrigerator cars differ from simple insulated boxcars and ventilated boxcars (commonly used for transporting fruit), neither of which are fitted with cooling apparatus. Reefers were originally ice-cooled, but now are equipped with any one of a variety of mechanical refrigeration systems.