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Trains An Illustrated History from Steam Locomotives to High-Speed Rail by Franc
Trains An Illustrated History from Steam Locomotives to High-Speed Rail by Franco Tanel
Heavy cardboard cover
327 pages
Copyright 2013
CONTENTS
Introduction Page 8
1830 -1880 The Railway Is Born Page 16
1880 -1900 From The Orient Express To The Trans-Siberian Page 74
1900 -1930 The Record-Breaking Trains Page 114
1930 -1945 Railway And The War Page 172
1945 - 1980 From Reconstruction To The New European Network Page 188
From 1980 To Today The Advent Of High-Speed Trains Page 236
Traveling For Pleasure And For Tourism Page 280
Index And Photographic Credits Page 322
INTRODUCTION The passing of a train no longer arouses any curiosity today. Its an event taken for granted like many other aspects of our daily life. But half a century ago, the birth of the railway had a revolutionary effect. For the first time the transport of people and goods via land no longer needed animal traction which, had always dictated its means and speed. Suddenly, distances grew shorter and the diabolical machine - as the steam locomotive seemed to some - allowed many people to travel at little cost.
This cheaper method of transport was a profound social development in a time when most people never traveled far from their homes for their whole lives. The Industrial Revolution in Europe would not have been possible without a railroad system capable of carrying goods anywhere. The United States of America might never have become the giant economy it is if it wasn't for the railroad.
Year after year, tracks and locomotives spread to every corner of the Earth. To narrate their development is a little like rerunning the history of European contemporary civilization: that is how integral to our history is this means of transport.
The first two rudimental steam locomotives were rapidly replaced by more powerful and faster models. In 1825 Stephenson's Locomotion carried the English at 14 mph (22 km/h), only 27 years later, in 1852, the French Crampton locomotives reached 70 mph (112 km/h). A speed which was prodigious at the time for those used to traveling by horse-drawn coaches, if not those drawn by oxen. The primitive wagons first used were replaced with especially designed carriages and at the beginning of the 1900s routes were already run by comfortable international trains. Thousands of goods cars, thanks to the increasing network, transported products of all kinds. These were years of rapid development but also great political instability. The great world conflicts of the last century affected the railroads enormously and they proved of great military and strategic importance.
Steam traction was eventually replaced by electric and the diesel power during a problematic modernization of the system after the Second World War. However, the railroads were unable to resist the spread of motorization, both in the transport of people and goods Road transport with its flexibility and low costs put the railroads of the world in crisis. This was a period when authoritative economists theorized the total disappearance of the railroad system and state administration. To face the growing deficit, thousands of miles of track were closed. Car, coaches and trucks, thanks to the low cost of fuel, seemed to be the only sensible means of transport and the railroads were destined for a marginal role.
However, at the beginning of the 1980s there was a shift against the dominance of road transport. The first great oil crisis in 1974 had already led to a road transport model which was obviously unsustainable in the long run. In the following years a greater awareness of environmental concerns also boosted railway use. There is still no means by which so many people can be carried at such a relatively low cost and with a minimal impact on the environment.
After years of uninterest, governments have begun investing in railroad infrastructures again. The railway has caught up with the times: on average and long distance it has become competitive thanks to the introduction of high speed trains. At first at speeds of 135-150 mph (217-240 km/h) and now up to 220 mph (350 km/h). Local and regional transport has been modernized with special trains for commuters and the development of intermodal freight services, i.e. combined integrated road/rail services, which are extremely efficient, Traffic management and control systems will soon be managed by satellite.
There has been a boost in tourist use too, as more and more people choose trains for trips and excursions of all kinds Railroads and locomotives are often not only a "different" means of transport, but the objects of cultural and leisure interest. This is born witness by the hundreds of historical and tourist railways which are now found in all corners of the world. It is possible to choose between going to China on a vintage steam train or to cross a continent in the comfort of a luxury train. In both cases, the journey, thanks to the train, becomes an event, an experience to be appreciated and not a simple means of getting from one place to another. Of course, the percentages of people and goods moved by rail are still low, but railroads are increasingly recognized everywhere as an invaluable and essential method of transport, and often unsurpassed as a less stressful and often more human way traveling.
The whole subject of trains and their networks is a complicated and difficult one to understand, but is fascinating nonetheless. Historical, economic, technological and social changes are all reflected in the evolution of the railroads, with varying stories across nations and continents It is an impossible task to cover the subject in just one volume, but by concentrating our attention on fundamental facts and the most representative trains we have attempted to give an overall account, a general impression of the story of the railroads. We have not tried to provide encyclopedic completeness, but rather a sincere and passionate attempt to transmit the charm of this often unknown world.
2-3 AN ENGINE DRIVER RINSES A LOCOMOTIVE USED ON THE DURANGO & SILVERTON NARROW GAUGE RAILROAD LINE, IN COLORADO.
4-5 A FREIGHT TRAIN HAULED BY A STEAM LOCOMOTIVE CROSSES A JITONG RAILWAY'S BRIDGE, IN THE NORTH OF CHINA.
6-7 A STEAM LOCOMOTIVE IN INDIA TRAVELING IN THE VICINITY OF THE TAJ MAHAL, AT AGRA.
9 THE UNION PACIFIC'S "119 PRIDE OF THE PRAIRIE" LOCOMOTIVE, A RECONSTRUCTION OF AN 1869 MODEL, MOVES TOWARDS PROMONTORY, UTAH.
10-11 A DINING CAR FORMING PART OF THE LUXURIOUS EASTERN & ORIENTAL EXPRESS TRAIN.
12-13 THE UNION PACIFIC'S "THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES," WHICH, SINCE 1936, CONNECTED CHICAGO TO Los ANGELES, WAS THE COMPANY'S MOST PRESTIGIOUS TRAIN.
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