Posted on 06/06/2008 7:39:28 AM PDT by sinanju
"...Bombardier's team was stumped. Europe is a mishmash of disparate rail systems that predate the European Union, back when governments banked on the incongruity "to protect themselves from invading armies and competition from foreign industries," says Oliver Sellnick, director at the International Union of Railways in Paris. While the European Union has managed to unify most of the continent on everything from a common currency to farm policy, combining railroads hasn't been easy.
Traveling by train from one country to another has long required coordination with multiple national railways. Drivers and locomotives, for instance, are changed at the borders for technical and legal reasons. For travelers, the challenges haven't been as readily apparent as passenger trains have long been given top priority when crossing borders (and high-speed trains, like France's TGV and Spain's AVE, promise to eliminate the few hassles). But the logistics of transporting goods by rail has long been a nightmare."
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Worked about as well as the Maginot Line.....
I believe Spain is the only country that has different sized track then the rest of Europe. It was done and used successfully to stop the nazi war machine. That has been the only logistical problem I ever found. You always had to switch trains at the border of Spain.
No. Not us, Americans? Europeans are smarter!
“No. Not us, Americans? Europeans are smarter!”
LOL....good one Leisler!...I’ve had a belly full of the Leftist dogma about how Europe is so much more advanced...well, we’ll see how smart they are as they are slowly subsumed by Islam.
One major misfortune was the decision, taken at an early stage, that Spain's railways should be built to an unusual broad track gauge of 1674 mm (roughly 5ft 6in, or six Castilian feet). The choice of gauge was influenced by Spain's hostility to neighbouring France during the 1850s: it was believed that making the Spanish railway network incompatible with that of France would hinder any French invasion. As a result, Portuguese railways were also built to a broad gauge. This unfortunate political decision came to be regretted by future generations, as it hindered international trade, and also made railway construction more expensive.
Not always... The overnight train from Geneva to Barcelona allows you to sleep in your own compartment the whole way, right through the night.
I always flew on SwissAir, then went to the beach in Barcelona to relax before business the next day.
Guess I am dating myself -
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.