Travel Through the World Cities by Rail

It is hard to believe that many people have never been on a train. Coming from a background where trains were easy and safe transport, I had the privilege to use them extensively. As they rattled along you could read a book, stair out of the window or simply take a nap. Without trains most cities would choke on air pollution and be paralyzed by traffic jams.

From Horsecars to City Trains
Trains were not always the same. The earliest trains were drawn by horses. Galvanizing home made wooded decorated carriages. Pretty in itself the idea was good, but the issues related to horses made them less effective. Fertilizer and pee were 2 but often they were too slow. Steam engines also failed to provide a better alternative.

When a vehicle ran away leaving the horses badly wounded, Andrew Hallidie popped up with the idea of a wire ca.. When the electrical motor was developed streetcars became the new train. This gave rise to the term trolley dodgers, as voters had to dodge these streetcars in Long Island and Brooklyn. Today these creative trucks can only be seen as diners and cottages. Steam and Diesel also played a part but for the towns electricity and magnets proved to be the only way to shove a train towards its destination

Trains , the backbone of Cities
Trains are flexible and they were built as mass transport systems. In certain towns like Bangkok, Taipei, Manhattan and London to name a couple it might be tough to imagine a life without them. Millions of commuters rely on them to get to work and back. If they came to a stop you all of a sudden need to get the folk out of the town with buses, taxis and other method of transport.

Mass Rapid Systems
Whilst the old style trains are still with us they are most fitted to cater for overnite and long distance journeys. But it is the new fast, convenient trains that play a big part in the life of a town. The Mass quick systems that bring you a train every couple of minutes is reliable and extremely effective. The stations are clean and the trains are fast and convenient. You can plan an appointment up to the minute even in a busy town. In 2002, if I am correct, I was in Taipei when a typhoon flooded the main station. This took out the mass quick system and within a day up to five million folk had to find alternative transport. The buses and taxis which were there to move the folk from the station, now also had to take them home. It took a few days simply to get the method arranged.

There is a certain magic around trains. Watching them coming and going out of a station is an adventure in itself. Then once they enter a station you have a support system kicking in to supply alternative transport, food, books and other less important services. Still the life of a city starts at the heart of the city, the train station. Find a train anywhere in any city but if you look for accommodation, a variety of places will be available using a travel search engine.