Hyrail Truck

Road-rail vehicles are very widely used by modern railroad companies for maintenance and inspection work. They are commonly known as hi-rail vehicles, from highway and railway, also often spelled as ‘hyrail’. Hyrail vehicles are converted from many types of regular road vehicles, including pickup trucks, SUVs, crane and flatbed trucks, excavator equipment, and many more. Small retractable rail wheels are mounted on the front and rear of the vehicle to keep it on the rails, and it is driven by its normal road wheels. Hyrail vehicles are used by maintenance crews to inspect rail lines and infrastructure, transport tools and small work crews, and carry out smaller repairs. They have replaced earlier maintenance vehicles including hand-pump carts, velocipedes, and motor speeders like those on display. Virtually every modern railroad uses these for maintenance duties.