Rack railways

Okay kiddo, have you ever been on a really steep hill on a train or a tram? It can be pretty scary, right? That's because regular trains and trams have trouble going up really steep hills without slipping backwards. It's like trying to climb up a really tall slide without any help.

That's where rack railways come in! Rack railways are special trains that are built to go up really steep hills. They have a special track that looks like a ladder laid flat on the ground. The train has special wheels that have gears or teeth that fit into the "rungs" of the ladder track. This helps the train climb up the hill without slipping.

Think of it like going up a really big staircase. When you walk up stairs, you step on each stair to help you climb up. The gears on the train's wheels work the same way. They grab onto each rung of the ladder track to help pull the train up the hill.

This means that rack railways can go up hills that regular trains and trams can't. They can also go down these really steep hills safely, because the gears on the wheels help slow down the train if it starts to go too fast.

So that's basically what a rack railway is - a special kind of train that can go up really steep hills thanks to its ladder track and gear wheels. Pretty cool, huh?