gravity railroad

American  

noun

1. a railroad depending partly on the force of gravity for motive power.

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Example Sentences

Back when things were still civilized, the rich folks from town used to come up and stay their weekends in grand hotels, and ride on the gravity railroad.

From Literature

The Switchback Gravity Railroad at Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania In the US, meanwhile, a Pennsylvania mining company built the Mauch Chunk gravity railroad, a 14km downhill track originally used to deliver coal to the nearest township, but fairly soon converted – after the coal ran out – to carry 35,000 excited passengers a year, at 50 cents a pop.

From The Guardian

At Coney Island, in 1884, Thompson built an uphill-&-downdale gravity railroad on a wooden structure 600 ft. long, the world's first roller coaster.

From Time Magazine Archive

“I don’t mean a steam railroad,” he said, “but a gravity railroad.”

From Project Gutenberg