Why do trains dont have wheel like cars?
Like the other guy said, they do have wheels but not wheels that have tires on them. The reason for this is because tires cannot support the weight that those wheels face constantly. In fact, a train can actually get a flat also. Have you ever been watching a train and one of the cars come by making a loud thumping noise? That’s a flat. It is a FLAT spot on the wheel, and yes, it needs changed. Another reason that they do not have tires like a car is that the rubber tire can not be formed strong enough to keep the train on the track. The train wheel has a lip that is bigger that the wheels, that lip rides on the inside of the track. This lip keeps the train on the track and steers the train along the track (Trains do not have a steering wheel). Could you imagine trying to drive a train with a steering wheel trying to keep tires like a car balanced on the tracks.
As others have said rubber is simply not strong enough to support the weight of a fully loaded rail car, which today ranges in the 286,000 lb. range. Similarly, steel is much more durable than rubber; simply put, it just doesn’t make sense to use rubber in the application of rail transporation. One other reason has to do with the design of wheels themselves. On the inside of each is a device known has a flange, which rides along to the inside of the rail and guides the cars along the track. Going back to the strength and durability issues, if these were of rubber they simply could not take the abuse and weight of cars moving from side to side on the rail (there is not much lateral movement, but some).
