The Railways in Britain
The success of early railways, such as the lines between big cities, led to a great increase in railway building in Victorian times. Between 1835 and 1865 about 25,000 kilometres of track were built, and over 100 railway companies were created.
Railway travel transformed people's lives. Trains were first designed to carry goods. However, a law in the 19th century forced railway companies to run one cheap train a day which stopped at every station and cost only a penny a mile. Soon working class passengers found they could afford to travel by rail. Cheap Day Excursion trains became popular and seaside resorts grew rapidly.
The railways also provided thousands of new jobs: building carriages, running the railways and repairing the tracks.
Railways even changed the time. The need to run the railways on time meant that local time was abolished and the clocks showed the same time all over the country. |