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  • It’s the ultimate test of time!

  • How would old-school trains stand up against the ones we have today?

  • Is there even any comparing?

  • You might be surprised: the grandpappies of locomotives have their own victories if you

  • ask me!

  • But more on that later.

  • For now, full-steam ahead, er, back to the past!

  • Rail cars were used in some parts of England as far back as the early 1500s.

  • They were mostly for carrying coal or unrefined metals out of mines or onto ships.

  • The first real trains didn’t come along until the Locomotion No.1 made its maiden

  • journey in 1825.

  • This early engine looked like a barrel on wheels, and the little 400-foot train chugged

  • along at a leisurely 15 mph.

  • Small and slowbut it did manage to haul about 600 passengers on its opening day!

  • Fast forward 100 years, and trains were the kings of long-distance travel.

  • For example, there’s the jolly green giant known as the Flying Scotsman.

  • It has more to its name than a brief cameo in the wizarding world of Harry Potter.

  • Built almost a century after the Locomotion No.1, the engine car of the Flying Scotsman

  • is nearly 80 ft long and weighs over 100 tons.

  • (Compare that to Locomotion No.1’s measly 7-ton engine car!).

  • With a maximum speed of 100 mph, a race between the two wouldn’t even be a fair contest.

  • But what about the trains of today?

  • Diesel trains date back to the late 1800s, but only really started to come into their

  • own in the 1950s.

  • Modern diesel trains aren't that much faster than those of the Scotsman's generation.

  • The quickest diesel locomotives in the world are the British InterCity 125s.

  • In service since the 1970s, these trains were designed to travel at 125 mph but have been

  • known to reach speeds of up to 148 mph when pushed to their limits.

  • That’s a maximum speed comparable to some light aircraft.

  • Diesel trains are also much more efficient than their steam predecessors.

  • Steam engines burn coal or wood to boil water.

  • The steam is collected inside the body of the engine and used to turn the wheels that

  • push it forward.

  • The problem: it takes a lot of pressure to move a train, so coal-powered engines needed

  • time to warm up before they were ready to go.

  • Meaning too much coal had to be burnt before the train could start moving.

  • The excess steam also needed to be released when the train arrived, which meant so much

  • built-up energy going to waste.

  • Making matters worse, steam engines were dirty, so the boilers required a thorough cleaning

  • at least once a month.

  • The engines also needed to be partially disassembled as part of regular maintenance.

  • Diesel engines are much cleaner and less prone to breaking down.

  • In the 1930s, a typical steam train could spend as much as 65% of its time offline for

  • maintenance.

  • A diesel engine from the same era only had to spend 5% of its time in the garage, and

  • that number has only continued to shrink over the decades.

  • But if you want to talk about speed and efficiency, that would be electric.

  • One of the fastest trains operating today is the SNCF TGV POS.

  • Hey buy a vowel, will ya?

  • Its name may be a tongue-twisting jumble of letters, but these sleek locomotives are capable

  • of a blistering 200 mph!

  • There are a few reasons electric trains are able to achieve such cheek-flapping speeds,

  • but weight is one of the biggest.

  • Most diesel trains are actually diesel-electric.

  • This means that the engine produces electricity, which is then used to power the motors that

  • drive the train forward.

  • Electric trains only need the motor that turns the wheels.

  • Since they get all their power from the electrical grid, they also don’t need to worry about

  • carrying the weight of fuel.

  • Electric trains are also quieter and completely emission-free.

  • They can even produce some of their own power through a system known as regenerative braking.

  • Put simply, this means that as the train slows down, the electric motors can work as electrical

  • generators.

  • The energy they produce can then be put back into the railway electrical grid.

  • Removing the diesel engines also cuts down on the number of moving parts.

  • Fewer parts mean fewer things that can break, which cuts down on maintenance time.

  • The only real downside is the upfront cost of electrifying a preexisting rail network,

  • but that's the kind of problem that's only an issue once.

  • Then there are maglev trains, which use magnets to hover (or levitate) above the tracks.

  • Futuristic, fast, and quiet, they have all the benefits of conventional electric trains.

  • They're also immune to derailments, and the lack of wheels means they don’t experience

  • friction, which lets them travel at a much greater speed than is possible on standard

  • tracks.

  • As of 2019, the fastest train in the world is the SCMaglev, which can reach an incredible

  • maximum speed of 375 mph.

  • Hope you weren’t planning on seeing this bad boy for yourself any time soonunfortunately,

  • the track it’s going to run on isn’t scheduled to open until 2027 and won’t be 100% complete

  • until 2042.

  • The problem is that maglev trains can't run on regular tracks.

  • An entirely new rail system must be built for them, and that comes with a hefty price

  • tag.

  • Not everyone's convinced the benefits of maglev trains outweigh the cost.

  • But what do you think?

  • Or, more generally, how is the rail system in your country?

  • Long overdue for an upgrade?

  • Let me know down in the comments!

  • Now, speed and efficiency are important and all, but what’s it like to ride on these

  • machines?

  • And how does that compare to our old barrel on wheels from earlier?

  • Yeah, the first generations of trains weren't very fun to ride in.

  • Oh, I'm sure there was a lot of excitement the first time you saw a giant metal horse

  • stampeding down the tracks, but that childlike wonder with a dash of fear wore off if you

  • were planning to ride for more than a few hours.

  • The first train cars resembled carriages or stagecoaches and didn't offer much protection

  • from the smoke billowing from the engine.

  • They were as unsafe as they were uncomfortable.

  • The cars sometimes banged together when stopping, and passengers were often thrown from their

  • seats.

  • The engine also tended to throw off sparks or hot embers that could cause a fire.

  • Glass half-full: it didn’t take too long for train cars to develop into something more

  • recognizable.

  • Half-empty: they weren’t much more comfortable.

  • Are you in Chicago and want to visit family on the East Coast?

  • Well, get ready to spend up to two days sitting on a hard, wooden bench!

  • Things would improve in 1862 when the Pullman company started producing luxury sleeper cars.

  • And I don’t use the word luxury lightly.

  • The cars had upholstered seats, carpeting, and lacquered wood.

  • Beds were concealed behind overhead panels and folded down like luggage compartments.

  • The Pullman company even manufactured private luxury cars.

  • Basically, hotel suites on wheels!

  • There ya go, Pappy, your victory!

  • Or not.

  • Modern train cars are still much safer and more comfortable than anything from the 19th

  • century.

  • Although, anyone who rides the subway to work might have trouble believing that.

  • Depending on where you live, the subway is the best or worst part of city living.

  • Long-distance trains, on the other hand, can feel like the lap of luxury.

  • The seats on modern passenger trains are similar to the ones on many airliners.

  • The difference is that they don't need seatbelts, and you're free to get up and walk around

  • whenever you feel like it.

  • Private rail cars are rare in the modern world, but sleeper cars are alive and well.

  • Depending on the route, your train might come equipped with anything from a small café

  • or snack bar to its own gourmet restaurant.

  • And of course, most passenger trains come equipped with the greatest necessity of modern

  • living: free Wi-Fi!

  • All aboard! [train whistle toot]

  • Hey, if you learned something new today, then give the video a like and share it with a

  • friend!

  • And here are some other cool videos I think you'll enjoy.

  • Just click to the left or right, and stay on the Bright Side of life!

It’s the ultimate test of time!

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鉄道は200年の間に変化してきた (Trains Have Changed Over 200 Years)

  • 7 1
    林宜悉 に公開 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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