Editing Train (section)

=== Brakes ===
{{Main|Railway air brake}}
Because trains are heavy, powerful brakes are needed to slow or stop trains, and because steel wheels on steel rails have relatively low friction, brakes must be distributed among as many wheels as possible.{{failed verification|Nothing about wheels or friction in the source|date=October 2023}} Early trains could only be stopped by manually applied hand brakes, requiring workers to ride on top of the cars and apply the brakes when the train went downhill.{{failed verification|"just like the old days" doesn't cover the info in this sentence|date=October 2023}} Hand brakes are still used to park cars and locomotives, but the predominant braking system for trains globally is air brakes, invented in 1869 by [[George Westinghouse]].{{failed verification|Nothing about braking systems globally or Westinghouse in the source|date=October 2023}} Air brakes are applied at once to the entire train using air hoses.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Herkewitz|first=William|date=2013-07-10|title=Understanding a Runaway Train: How Do Air Brakes Work?|url=https://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/engineering/understanding-a-runaway-train-how-do-air-brakes-work-15678938|access-date=2021-11-04|website=Popular Mechanics|language=en-US}}</ref>