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The standard gauge (also Stephenson gauge after George Stephenson, International gauge or normal gauge) is a widely used railway track gauge. Approximately 60% of lines in the world are this gauge (see the list of countries that use the standard gauge). Except for Russia, Uzbekistan, and Finland, all high-speed lines are this gauge. The distance between the inside edges of the rails is defined to be 1,435 mm (but in the United States and Canada, it is still defined as 4 ft which is 1,435 mm). It is also called UIC gauge, or UIC track gauge, the European gauge in the EU and Russia, or uniform gauge in Queensland. == History == As railways developed and expanded one of the key issues was track gauge (the distance, or width, between the inner sides of the rails) to be used. The result was the adoption throughout a large part of the world of a “standard gauge” of 4 ft in allowing inter-connectivity and inter-operability. In England some early lines in colliery (coal mining) areas in the northeast were ; and in Scotland some early lines were (Scotch gauge). By 1846, in both countries, these lines were widened to standard gauge. Parts of the United States, mainly in the Northeast, adopted the same gauge because some early trains were purchased from Britain. However, until well into the second half of the 19th century Britain and the USA had several different track gauges. The American gauges converged as the advantages of equipment interchange became increasingly apparent; notably, the South's broad gauge was converted to be compatible with standard gauge over the course of two days beginning 31 May 1886.〔(Conversion )〕 ''See'' Track gauge in the United States. With the advent of metrication, standard gauge was redefined as 1,435 mm, a reduction of 0.1 mm, but well within existing tolerance limits. The exception is the United States, where standard gauge continues to be defined in terms of customary units. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Standard gauge」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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