It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomotive's boiler to the point where it becomes gaseous and its volume increases 1,700 times. Functionally, it is a steam engine on wheels.
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Due to the relatively low cost of coal, oil was rarely used on Britain's streamtrains and in most cases only where there was a shortage of coal. In the United States, the first oil burning steam locomotive was in service on the Southern Pacific railroad by 1900.
Practically all road locomotives have a toilet. Older yard switchers do not. The toilet is in the nose and consists of .... a toilet. There are no other facilities such as running water and the like.
By the late steam era (1930s-1940s) a locomotive used in main line service could run anywhere between 75 to 150 miles before needing to refuel, which typically coincided with a train crew's district/territory.
It found that passing trains carrying coal add on average 8 micrograms per cubic meter of air (ug/m3) to ambient PM2.5 pollution. That is 2 to 3 ug/m3 more than freight trains contribute.
Despite the advent of electric and diesel locomotives in the mid-20th century, steam locomotives continued to be used and constructed into the 21st century. The regular use of steam locomotives in non-tourist revenue service concluded in 2022.