1
The development of railways
The iron road
page 8
Railway development 1700-1824
Horse trains and iron rails
page 10
Railway development 1825-1830
Steam wins the day
page 12
Railway-development 1831-1850
Worldwide expansion begins
page 14
Railway development 1851-1880
Opening up the West
page 16
Railway development 1881-1913
Achievements and disasters
page 18
Railway development 1914-1922
Networks in The Great War
page 20
Railway development 1923-1945
The fantastic streamliners
page 22
Railway development 1946 and after
The new age of railways
page 24
Locomotive development 1800-1834
Harnessing the power of steam
page 26
Locomotive development 1835-1874
Improving engine performance
page 28
Locomotive development 1875-1905
Compound locomotives
and superheating
page 30
Locomotive development 1906-1926
The era of technological
innovation
page 32
Locomotive development 1927-1934
The high point of steam
page 34
Locomotive development 1935-1944
Moving towards diesel power
page 36
Locomotive development 1945
and after
Locomotive power now
page 38
Rolling stock 1800-1875
Cattle cars to family lounges
page 40
Rolling stock 1876 1924
Traffic becomes specialized
page 42
Rolling stock 1925 and after
Freight improvements:
commuter comfort
page 44
Railway architecture
Building on the grand scale
page 46
The paraphernalia of railways
page 48
2
How railways
work now
The eclipse of steam
page 50
Diesel motive power
page 51
Electric and hydraulic
transmissions
page 52
Electric power
page 53
High-speed trains
page 54
Permanent way: laying the track
page 56
Permanent way: smooth running
page 58
Bridge and tunnel construction page 60
Passenger cars: early days
page 62
Passenger cars: modern
improvements
page 64
Freight cars: specialization
page 66
Freight cars: automation
page 68
Modern signaling
page 70
Traffic and scheduling:
main line
page 72
Traffic and scheduling:
commuter
page 74
The science of freight handling
page 76
The great classification yards
page 78
The Conrail experiment
page 80
3
Great routes
Through the Alpine Fortress I
page 82
Through the Alpine Fortress II
page 84
Trans-Europe Expresses
page 86
The great British route: London
to Glasgow
page 88
Rail versus air: a real contest
page 90
Paris-Lyon: tomorrow's way
page 91
Across Asia: the eastern goal
page 92
Across Asia: the great dream
page 94
Australia: crossing the arid
continent
page 96
New Zealand: southernmost
route
page 98
Japan's Shinkansen I
page 100
Japan's Shinkansen II
page 102
Crossing North America I
page 104
Crossing North America II
page 106
The Andes: highest in the world I
page 108
The Andes: highest in the world II
page 110
Mountain climbing: rack and
pinion
page 112
4
Great expresses
The Orient Express: the glory
that faded
page 114
The Irish Mail: over a century of
service
page 116
The Settebello: speed and luxury
page 118
The Aquitaine: pioneer of electric
power
page 120
The Chief: America in style
page 122
The Blue Train: pride of South
Africa
page 124
The Canadian: transcontinental
connection
page 126
The Rajdhani Express: India's
fastest
page 128
5
fltlas
Europe page 130
British Isles
page 132
France and the Alps
page 134
Central Europe
page 136
Italy
page 138
Northern Europe
page 140
Spain and Portugal
page 142
Western and Central USSR
page 144
Eastern and Central USSR
page 146
China, Japan and Korea
page 148
Japan page 150
Southeast Asia
page 152
India and Pakistan
page 154
Western North Africa
page 156
Eastern North Africa
page 158
Southern Africa
page 160
Canada
page 162
United States
Page 164
Central America
page 166
Northern South America
page 168
Southern South America
page 170
Australia and New Zealand
page 172
Legend and comparisons
page 174
6
Railway systems
Europe: Scandinavia
page 178
United Kingdom and Ireland
page 180
Belgium and Luxembourg
page 182
Netherlands
page 183
West Germany
page 184
East Germany and Poland
page 185
Switzerland and Austria
page 186
Czechoslovakia and Hungary
page 187
Portugal and Spain
page 188
France page 189
Italy, Yugoslavia, Albania
page 190
Romania, Bulgaria, Greece
page 191
USSR
page 192
Asia: Turkey and Middle East I
Page 193
Middle East II and India
page 194
Pakistan and Far East I
page 195
Far East II
page 196
Africa: Northeast
page 197
West Africa
page 198
Central Africa I
page 199
Central Africa II
page 200
Southern Africa
page 201
Canada and United States
page 202
Central America
page 204
Caribbean and South America I
page 205
South America II
page 206
Australia and New Zealand
page 208
7
Reference
Chronology
page 210
Who's Who
page 210
Glossary page 216
Bibliography
page 218
Index page 220
Acknowledgements
page 224
