22 Facts About Railway Travel That Will Make You a Small Talk Guru

that will make you a small talk guru
22 factsaboutrailwaytravel
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hello traveller
Traveling by train may not be the fastest way to get from
one place to another but it surely is one of the most
romantic and comfortable one. There is something
almost magical about the railway. The nearly
meditational rythm of all the sounds that surround you,
the landscape behind the window passing just slowly
enough to observe and enjoy the view. The legends of the
Orient Express and the Transsyberian Railways make the
experience a lot more inspiring than just flying or driving
a car.
Trains are great way to discover not only the country but
to make friends and get great insights into the culture of
a country you visit. We’ve collected some interesting
facts about this way of moving around. Chances are you
were rather oblivious to most of them. Enjoy and share!

earlyancestorsofrailway
The earliest evidence of a wagonway, a predecessor of the
railway, found so far was the 6 to 8.5 km long Diolkos
wagonway, which transported boats across the Isthmus of
Corinth in Greece since around 600 BC. Wheeled vehicles
pulled by men and animals ran in grooves in limestone, which
provided the track element, preventing the wagons from
leaving the intended route. The Diolkos was in use for over
650 years, until at least the 1st century AD. The first horse-
drawn wagonways also appeared in ancient Greece, with
others to be found on Malta and various parts of the Roman
Empire, using cut-stone tracks. They fell into disuse as the
Roman Empire collapsed.

thesteepestrailtrack
The steepest Cogwheel railway in the world is in
Switzerland. It has a gradient of 48%. The steepest cog
railway in the world (maximum gradient 48%) climbs to
Pilatus Kulm and the romantic Hotel Pilatus-Kulm, built
in 1890, with its sun terrace and panoramic views of
the Alps.

thelongeststraightstretch
The longest straight stretch of railway is in Australia. The
part without any curves is 478km (301 miles) long. The
Trans-Australian Railway crosses the Nullarbor Plain of
Australia from Port Augusta in South Australia to Kalgoorlie
in Western Australia. It includes the world's longest stretch
of dead-straight railway track, a 478 kilometre (297 mi)
length between the 797 km post west of Ooldea and the
1275 km post west of Loongana.

straighttothevolcanotop
The only railway to go to the top of a volcano was built
on Mount Vesuvius in Italy, in 1880.Vesuvius funicular
was the only plant in the world clambering up on an
active volcano, at that time. Only plant in the world
climbing up on an active volcano at that time,
transported tourists on the top of Mt. Vesuvius
comfortably sitting, from 1880 to 1944

theworldlargeststation
The world's largest station by number of platforms is
Grand Central Terminal, Park Avenue and 42nd Street,
New York City, USA, built from 1903–13 which has 44
platforms. They are situated on two underground levels
with 41 tracks on the upper level and 26 on the lower.
The station covers 19 ha (48 acres), and on average
some 660 Metro North trains and 125,000 commuters
use it every day.

secretplatforminNYC
There is also a secret platform below the Waldorf
Astoria hotel, next door to Grand Central Station. The
belief is that this was used by President Franklin D.
Roosevelt, to leave the hotel (after giving a speech)
in his wheelchair, but hidden from view. This
abandoned platform was never used in regular
service, but as a loading point, coincidentally under
the hotel.

theheaviesttrainever
The heaviest train in the world was a freight train in
Australia in 2001. It was 7.3km (4.6 miles) long and
weighed 95,000 tonnes. That is as heavy as 2.8
million ten-year-olds or more than 27,000 elephants

thefastesttrainever
The top dog in the world of fast trains is China,
which broke the 300 mph barrier with the
CRH380A. The 302 mph top speed makes this
the fastest legal way to travel by land.

thepeoplewhotravel
In average of 3.5 million passengers travel by
train daily in Great Britain making it one of the
busiest railways in Europe.

thelongeststationseat
The longest station seat in the world is at Scarborough
station. It is 139m long. Scarborough railway station,
formerly called Scarborough Central, serves the seaside
town of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. It lies
42 miles (68 km) east of York and is one of the eastern
termini on the North TransPennine route operated by First
TransPennine Express. The station is also at the northern
end of the Yorkshire Coast Line, and has the longest
station seat in the world at 152 yards (139 m) in length.

thelongesttunnelever
In 1988 the 53.850 km (33.461 mi) long Seikan Tunnel in Japan
was completed under the Tsugaru Strait, linking the islands of
Honshu and Hokkaido. It is the longest railway tunnel in the
world. The track level is about 140 metres (460 ft) below the
seabed and 240 m (790 ft) below sea level. It travels beneath
the Tsugaru Strait — connecting Aomori Prefecture on the
Japanese island Honshu and the island Hokkaido — as part of
the Kaikyo Line of Hokkaido Railway Company. The name Seikan
comes from combining the on'yomi readings of the first
characters of Aomori (青森?) and Hakodate (函館?), the
nearest major city on the Hokkaido side.

firststeamlocomotive
The first full-scale working railway steam locomotive
was built by Richard Trevithick in the United Kingdom
and, on 21 February 1804, the world's first railway
journey took place as Trevithick's unnamed steam
locomotive hauled a train along the tramway from the
Pen-y-darren ironworks, near Merthyr Tydfil to
Abercynon in south Wales

first publicly subscribed
The Stockton and Darlington Railway (S&DR) in north-
eastern England was the world's first publicly
subscribed passenger railway. Opened in 1825, it was
built between Witton Park and Stockton-on-Tees via
Darlington and connected to several collieries near
Shildon. 26 miles (40 km) long, it was also the
world's longest railway line at the time.

notwillingtogiveup
Other forms of transportation have come (and some
go) yet trains still remain an important way of
transporting goods. Today 40% of world’s freight
cargo is transported via trains, and that number
continues to grow with each year.

first underground train
First underground railway was also made in
London. This small network of tunnels had
problems with steam engine smoke, but its
popularity never wavered.

aboutrailwaytravel
First underground railway was also made in London.
This small network of tunnels had problems with
steam engine smoke, but its popularity never
wavered.

Across america
East and West coast of North America was linked with
railway network on May 10, 1866 by uniting Union
Pacific and Central Pacific Railroads. This 3000 miles
long railroad enabled people to travel from New York to
California in mere days, instead of weeks and months.

trainsinengland
Currently England has over 15 thousand kilometers of
working railways, with 14353 used for passenger
trains. Those trains go over 40 thousand bridges and
tunnels.

thelongestrouteintheworld
The longest route for one train can be made between
Moscow and Vladivostok on Trans-Siberian Express
railway line that is 9,297 kilometers long! The Trans-
Siberian Railway (Russian: Транссибирская
магистраль Transsibirskaya Magistral') is a
network of railways connecting Moscow with the
Russian Far East and the Sea of Japan. It is the
longest railway line in the world. There are connecting
branch lines into Mongolia, China and North Korea. It
has connected Moscow with Vladivostok since 1916
and is still expanded.

environmentalyfriendly
Trains are one of the most eco-
friendly ways you can travel.

speed demons
Current speed record for trains is held by French TGV
bullet train. He reached the speed of 584km per hour
and then braked for 16 kilometers before it managed
to stop. First commercial steam train (Stephenson’s
“Rocket”) managed to reach the speed of 96
kilometers per hour in 1830.

speed demons
Maglev trains can reach speeds of over 550 km/h, but
by the year 2020 they will most probably come close
to 800 km/h.Current speed record for trains is held by
French TGV bullet train. He reached the speed of
584km per hour and then braked for 16 kilometers
before it managed to stop. First commercial steam
train (Stephenson’s “Rocket”) managed to reach the
speed of 96 kilometers per hour in 1830.

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22 Facts About Railway Travel That Will Make You a Small Talk Guru

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