World’s Longest Railways

Countries with the Longest Railways

From the United States to Brazil, you will find a railway system in nearly every country. The larger the country, the bigger the railway system will be. This is due to these countries knowing that their people need efficient transportation and they cannot survive on car alone. Here is a list of the longest railway systems all over the world.

Longest Railways around the World

The United States is home to the longest rail system in the world. The operating length is 250,000 km, about 80% of the line is dedicated to freight lines and the remaining 20% devoted to passenger lines. Among the lines are 538 railroads operated by private organizations. Amtrak, the passenger railway, has more than 30 routes that connects 46 states. The railway network is not set to stop there since there are plans to add 27,000 km of high speed railways by 2030.

Not to be left behind is China’s rail network whose route length expands over 100,000 km. Second biggest in the world, their network is ran by the China Railway Corporation. It is the principal mode of transportation in China carrying 2.08 billion passengers. There are 90,000 km of standard passenger railways and 10,000 km of high speed railways. It is also an invaluable asset when it comes to shipping freight as it carries 3.22 billion tons of it. As with the United States, there is plans to expand the rail network to over 270,000 by 2050.

Comin in third is Russia’s rail network at 85,000km. That does not mean it is not as nearly impressive as the U.S. and China’s rail system. Carrying 1.08 billion passengers and 1.2 billion tons of freight, Russia’s railway system can hold its own. Run by state-owned Russian Railways, their lines connect to many European and Asian national railways such as Finland, France, China, and Mongolia. There are plans to renovate their high speed rails since they proved inefficient due to sharing lines with low-speed trains.

Railroad Construction in Anaheim

The common thread amongst the railways mentioned above is expansion of the railway networks. Since railroads are relied upon for more than passenger commutes, countries still rely on them for the shipment of goods across the country. Especially in big metropolises such as Los Angeles and surrounding areas.

At Sharp & Fellows Inc. we provide our expertise to and skills to rail networks when they need to expand their lines. For more information, visit our site or contact us at (310)323-7784.