World Rail Network and Rail Systems
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With the introduction of the steam locomotive in 1829, a mechanized land transport system became available for the first time. According to the geographical settings, rail lines were established differently because of the variety of strategies to be achieved, namely access to resources, servicing regional economies and to achieve territorial control. The first railway companies were mainly point to point ventures with the company often taking the name of the serviced destinations. As the rail system expanded, several mergers took place, which lead to rather peculiar semantic result.
Rail transportation is characterized by a high level of economic and territorial control since most rail companies are operating in situation of monopoly, as in Europe, or oligopoly, as in North America where seven large rail freight carriers control and operate large networks. Operating a rail system involves using regular (scheduled), but rigid, services. Rail transportation, like roads, has an important relationship with space, since it is the transport mode the most constrained by the physiography.
Copyright © 1998-2013, Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Dept. of Global Studies & Geography , Hofstra University, New York, USA.
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