Rail network of North America
Topic: World Transport and Communication · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 7 "Transport and Communication"
Meaning
North America has one of the largest rail networks. NCERT says it has nearly 40% of the world's railways. Unlike Europe's railways, it carries mainly bulky freight over long distances, such as ores, grain, timber and machinery. Passenger traffic is less important. The network is densest in the industrial east-central USA and nearby Canada.
Example
Canada's railways are publicly owned and carry wheat from the prairies and coal to the ports. In the USA, the Union and Pacific line (completed 1869) runs from New York through Chicago and Omaha to San Francisco. It carries ores, grain, paper, chemicals and machinery.
Don't confuse with
- Rail network of Europe: it is mostly double or multiple track and carries more passengers than freight. Belgium has the highest rail density in the world, not the USA. Among NCERT's exercise options, however, the answer is the USA.
Related concepts
- Stockton and Darlington Railway
- Commuter trains
- Underground railway
- Rail network of Europe
- Channel Tunnel
- Trans-Andean Railway
- Uspallata Pass
- Benguela Railway
- Tanzania-Zambia Railway
- Blue Train