The longest railways in the world. List of countries by rail network length

The first railroad tracks were laid almost two centuries ago. Today, traveling even in an ultra-modern high-speed train is not the fastest way to travel around the planet, but remains one of the most convenient and safe. And freight rail transportation will be the main type of commodity exchange between countries and regions for a long time to come.

A developed network of railway tracks, including the longest railway in the world, which for a long time was considered the Trans-Siberian Railway - mandatory conditions progress of any economically developed area and the entire world economy.

History reference

After a very a short time after the first public railway track was opened in England in 1825, it became clear that this was the best way to transport goods and passengers. The railways of the world began to entangle the land with a web of rails. The number of laid tracks began to clearly reflect the level of economic development of the state and its potential, including military.

The Russian Empire, in full accordance with the national character of the titular nation, harnessed and carried loads on horseback for a long time. Although the first railway communication between the capital St. Petersburg was established as early as 1837, the operation of railways in Russia was conditional for a long time due to their absence.

National feat

The specifics of the Russian spaces dictated the need for the accelerated development of the railway network - this was clear to the most backward retrograde in the tsarist government. In May 1891, the heir to the throne, the future last autocrat, Nicholas II personally poured a wheelbarrow of earth into the base of the railway embankment near Vladivostok. And the construction of the eastern section of the Trans-Siberian began. In order for the first train to run from the Atlantic coast to Vladivostok in 1904, a colossal amount of money and manpower was spent.

The distance from Europe to the Russian Far East is such that after the completion of construction, Russia inevitably ended up with the longest railway in the world. The construction of the Great Siberian Way, as the highway was called at the beginning, was called by many (especially during the days of celebrations on the occasion of the opening of the movement) a joint feat of a single Russian people, uniting both a leading engineer and a simple digger to achieve a result. Having removed excessive pathos, one can find a large share of truth in this statement.

Trans-Siberian Railway

Formally, the Trans-Siberian was completed when the section of the route from Chelyabinsk to Vladivostok was built, but the reconstruction continued for a very long time. Documented in the form of a tablet at the Yaroslavl railway station in Moscow, the length of the Trans-Siberian Railway is 9298 km. In 2012, the full electrification of the Trans-Siberian Railway was completed, and today the train from Moscow to Vladivostok takes only 6 days and 13 hours.

Russian nature cannot leave even a purely prosaic and economic concept inanimate. A long journey along the Russian railways is not just a movement in space, it impresses any person, giving rise to deep feelings. The longest railway in the world - the Trans-Siberian Railway - is the heroine of numerous poetic and prose texts of various genres, they compose songs and make films about it.

Great Silk Road

China has long been a leader in economic growth. The trade turnover, economic, political, social and public relations of modern China with Russia and Europe require the establishment of high-throughput communication routes. The railways of the world and Europe are becoming an important part of this process.

Historical traditions in establishing contacts are seen by many modern businessmen and politicians in laying on modern basis The Great Silk Road, known since ancient times. The caravan routes that connected the East and Europe were for some time of great intensity, which was reflected in the widespread use of Orientalism in fashion, fine and applied arts in Europe. Chinoiserie - Chinese Rococo, which became the defining trend for leading European architects and decorators at the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries - is largely the result of the heroic efforts of merchants who brought rich caravans from China.

An important direction of the economy

In the modern economy, the component is significant. The need to connect remote areas of the country with the industrial and economic center, the high need for interstate transportation made China a leader in the railway industry. The length of the railways, on which ultra-modern trains move, is constantly growing.

In 2012, a new railway line from Beijing to Guangzhou was opened to traffic. The longest and fastest line in the world connected the Chinese capital and a major metropolis in the south of the country. Super-comfortable and reliable trains will move along it at a speed of about 300 km/h, reducing by three times the time spent on this road before. The largest railways in the world are following this path of development.

Madrid - Yiwu

Today, to deliver goods from China to Europe, many months of dangerous journeys on camels and horses along difficult paths are not needed. But you need to invest heavily. The desire to make such a way fast, profitable, reliable, the Chinese proclaimed long ago, inviting Russian specialists to cooperate.

At the end of 2014, they solemnly celebrated in China, and in Madrid 21 days later they met a train that had overcome the path from the Chinese city of Yiwu, located on the Pacific coast. This is how the longest railway in the world with a length of about 13,000 km began to function. Although its condition does not yet allow the movement of comfortable passenger trains, and the passage of trains largely depends on the weather and other local factors, it can be said that the development of the world's transport network has entered a new, impressive stage of development.

We know about cable cars, highways, railway lines and so on. Each of them has its own champion - there are the straightest, longest, fastest roads.

The longest cable car

The highest and longest cable car in the world started operating in 2010 in Armenia. Its length is five kilometers seven hundred meters. The construction was carried out by the Swiss company Garaventa. The cost of construction amounted to thirteen million euros. It leads to the monastery of Tatev. Between the two stations, three pillars were built: one above the village of Halidzor, the second near the Tatev Monastery. The cabin of the cable car can accommodate up to twenty-five people and can accelerate up to thirty-seven kilometers per hour. The cable car in Armenia has the lyrical name Wings of Tatev Tatev Monastery is one of the brightest monuments of medieval architecture in Armenia. The construction of the cable car was of great importance for the country. The fact is that before the appearance of the cable car, it was not easy to get into the monastery complex, since the road leading to it was impassable. Now, to overcome the entire journey by cable car, you need to spend only eleven minutes.

The most long road in Russia

The longest railway in Russia is the Trans-Siberian Railway. Its construction began in 1891. The length is nine thousand two hundred and eighty eight kilometers. It stretched across the entire Eurasian continent. Its second name is the Great Siberian Way. The Trans-Siberian Railway is the longest road in Russia. Its length is more than 9 thousand km.

Among the world's roads, the longest was built in Russia.

We are talking about the Amur federal highway, which connects the Center of Russia with the Far East. The history of the M58 Chita-Khabarovsk highway has more than one decade. It was built in parts. The idea of ​​the Moscow tract, which would run parallel to the Trans-Siberian Railway, was first born in 1905. Military road builders began construction only in 1978. The road had to pass through the impenetrable taiga. Fifteen years later, only six hundred kilometers of the route were built, not best quality. The road from Khabarovsk to Chita took five days. Only at the end of the twentieth century, the question of completing the construction of the Amur highway again arose. Khabarovsk-Chita is the last constructed section of the longest highway. Thanks to the Federal Target Program, the construction of the road continued. Now there is through traffic between Vladivostok and Moscow. The length of the Amur highway is two thousand ninety-seven kilometers. It has almost two thousand artificial structures and two hundred and eighty bridges.

The longest railway

The longest railroad is located in Russia and is called the Trans-Siberian Railway. It stretched for nine thousand two hundred and eighty eight kilometers across the whole of Eurasia, passing through all the major outlets to Europe and Asia, capturing port cities. Pacific Ocean. About a hundred million tons are transported along this highway every year. The beginning of the Trans-Siberian Railway is considered the Yaroslavsky railway station in Moscow, and its end is the Vladivostok railway station in the Golden Horn Bay (Sea of ​​Japan).

The longest high-speed railway is in China.

In 2012, the longest high-speed railway began to operate in China. The length of the branch was two thousand two hundred kilometers. It stretches from Guangzhou to Beijing. Trains move along it at a speed of three hundred kilometers per hour and overcome the entire path in just eight hours. During the journey, the train makes thirty-five stops. By comparison, the journey from Guangzhou to Beijing used to take twenty-two hours. Up to 200,000 people travel along this road every day. In terms of the length of high-speed railways, China occupies a leading position. On a long section of the expressway, trains travel at a speed of 300 km / h. There is another longest railway - a toy plastic one. It was built in Shanghai. The longest plastic track is two kilometers eight hundred and eighty eight meters long and consists of almost fourteen thousand sections. Thomas the Tank Engine was launched along this toy railroad. The previous record for the longest plastic railroad was held by Japan, but the length of the last track was twenty percent less.

The longest straight road in the world

The straightest, most boring and longest road in the world is the Eyre Highway. There is nothing on the sides of the road to catch your eye, there are no picturesque landscapes, no villages, no cities, no natural water, no motels, that is, absolutely nothing even a little interesting. The longest straight road in the world is in Australia. The length of this straight highway is one thousand two hundred kilometers. It stretches along the Nullabor valley from Norseman to Siduna. This high-quality good road can be driven by any car. Some variety in this trip can be made by large wild animals, sometimes going out at dusk to take a walk along the highway.

The longest direct railway in Russia - Moscow-St. Petersburg

I am glad to welcome you, dear users and lovers of railway transport. The topic of the article is the length of Russian railways. What do you think about this? Ever asked a similar question? Does the length of the railway in Russia reach a high level?

Remember how in high school in a math lesson we studied problems about the movement of vehicles from point A to point B, considered all possible solutions to the problem, analyzed each action, and all the data in the problem, we can easily attribute the length to this topic. Yes, a rather strange word for a newcomer to the rail industry. But here everything is elementary simple. The length is the well-known length, width and height of a certain territory, it has the property of being measured in different forms.

Transport, routes and length

Rail transport in Russian Federation can be called one of the largest railway networks worldwide! In addition, this type of transport is one of the main ones, thanks to the work of railway machines, a number of freight and passenger traffic. About two percent of able-bodied citizens of Russia are involved in this area. It is known that today a huge amount of transport is used on the railway lines. Just imagine - more than 22 thousand locomotives, 890 thousand freight cars, 26 thousand passenger cars, as well as more than 15 thousand electric trains and diesel trains. These numbers are mind boggling!

As of 2013, the length of Russian railways is 85.3 thousand units. The total duration is the next mileage - 121 thousand, and this accompanies the fact that Russia is in third place, behind only the United States and China.

Electrification plays a significant role in the railway transport of the Russian Federation. Thanks to this system, the Russian railway occupies the 2nd place in the world, after China, where the electrified length of rail tracks is about 55.8 thousand kilometers, and is considered the largest railway.

Electrification is a system of work on a rail line using electric rolling stock, such as an electric train or an electric locomotive.

Back to the Future!

Railroads were popular back in the 19th century, when they were just emerging in Russia. The first railway is Tsarskoselskaya, with a duration of only some 27 km, it is located near the Tsarskoselsky railway station and the village of Tsarskoye. Know something about it?

The Nikolaev railway has known great glory, its popularity falls in the times of the century before last. It was more developed than the first ways. The length of the Nikolaev road at the time of its operation was 645 km. Over time, additional lines were added. I think many have heard about the Nikolaev railway!

At the beginning of the last century, probably the most colossal railway of that time, the Trans-Siberian Railway, was created. With the help of this road, the European part of the country was connected, as well as the Urals with the Far East, its length is 9288.2 km, this is far from 27 Tsarskoye Selo units!

During the Soviet period, all railway territories were transferred to state ownership. As a result, almost all obsolete transport experienced reconstruction, most of the roads were switched to diesel traction, rails were replaced, and automatic train control was also installed. Conclusion - during the Soviet era, the railway sector felt the influence of maximum development and perfection. Since the 1990s, the condition of railway stations has deteriorated significantly, the construction of new roads has stopped. But, after the 2000s, the development of the railway sector went up sharply.

As of 2030, the length of the railways of the Russian Federation should be about 107.6 thousand. But if certain requirements are not met, the chances of achieving the desired result will be zero, and the development of the rail sector will remain at its level without any movements.

The longest duration of railways in the world is considered to be the American Railway, which is 293.6 thousand km, and this is the state for 2014. What can we say about 2016, probably over the course of two years, it has undergone a number of changes and adjustments, has become more popular and larger in size.

The duration of the rail tracks of the Russian Federation is increasing many times, the difference can be seen over the years from 2013 to 2014, the difference in just one year already reaches 2 thousand kilometers of railway lines. Every year the length of Russia's railways is expected to be longer and larger in size.

And what do you think about the duration of the railway tracks of the whole world, and not just about the three leading countries?! As of 2006, the world length of railways reaches 1,370,782 kilometers. What can we say about the world length today. Just imagine how many changes have taken place over the past 10 years. In the countries of the former USSR, as of 1990, the length reached 145.6 thousand kilometers.

I believe that the length will always be relevant, not only in the field of rail transport, even if it is a calculation of the length of the Black Sea coastline. This knowledge about length, width and height has been laid down for us since childhood, adolescence. And then we ask ourselves, why do we need the subject of arithmetic?! Are these tasks for calculating the cut and height really useful in the future, because I want to become a humanist, and mathematical sciences have nothing to do with me. The answer has matured by itself - logic, quick calculations, friendship with numbers and units should always go with us in one step, because the formula that remained on the page of the textbook for grade 8, and not in memory, could benefit us right now, and perhaps would play an important role.

“There is a well-known theory, proven many times by practice, that no matter how many people are already in the car, one more person can always enter. First with one foot, then with two feet, with a jacket sandwiched between the doors, but he will come in. The method of mathematical induction proves that an infinite number of people can enter the car. - Kitya Carlson.

I want to give an interesting example. What can you say about the Moscow metro? Have you ever thought about its length, height, width, in general, about the length? Its duration can be both operational and deployed. What is the difference?! The operational length is measured along the axis of the main track, and is 292.9 kilometers, while the deployed duration of the tracks is the sum of the lengths of all tracks, the deployed duration reaches 801.3 km. The Moscow metro is considered the largest in length in Russia. Did you know something about it?

I want to believe that my article was quite instructive and informative, I hope you learned and found here everything you needed.

Thanks for attention! All the best, see you soon!

The railway is what at one time turned the world upside down, allowed people to travel faster than usual, deliver goods that were previously inaccessible to transport masses. And most importantly - the railways made it possible to get to the most remote places. Rail transport remains relevant today. After all, there are a lot of railways in the world. Some of them differ not only in their age, but also in length.

1. New Silk Road

A unique railway that starts in the Chinese city of Yiwu and ends in the capital of Spain - Madrid. The road connects Europe and Asia, passes through 8 countries, is the largest in the world. The trip on it takes 21 days, and its total length is 13,026 km.

2. Trans-Siberian Railway

The construction of this railway began in 1981, and it became the first railway to connect Europe and Asia. The road has been repeatedly modernized, which allows it to be used today. Its length is 9,288 km. You can get from Moscow to Vladivostok in 6 days.

3. Moscow-Beijing

Another long railway that intersects with the Trans-Siberian. It is on it that the well-known Vostok train runs. The length of the road is about 9 thousand kilometers. You can overcome them in 145 hours of continuous travel. Also, at about 6 o'clock, the train stops at the border. This is a necessary delay, because the train's wheelsets are being changed.

4. Transcontinental railroad

In terms of the total length of railways, it is the United States that ranks first in the world. They also have giants. The transcontinental railroad was built in 1869. Today it is part of the largest transcontinental network, the total length of which exceeds 107,000 km.

5. Chicago-Los Angeles

One of the longest roads in the USA. Its length is 4,390 km. The road passes through seven states. It will take 67 hours to complete it. The train makes stops at 40 stations!

6. Toronto-Vancouver

Another very long road, this time located in Canada. Its length is 4,466 km. It connects cities such as Toronto and Vancouver. It takes 86 hours by train to get from one city to another. There are 66 stations on the road.

7. Lxasa - Gyangzhou

China can also boast of a long railway track. On the internal routes of the country, this road is one of the longest. Its length is 4,980 km. The train passes this way in just 54 hours. Along the way, the train can meet a huge number of attractions.

Continuing the theme in our time!

The length of the largest railway in the world is 9298.2 km. It is called the Trans-Siberian Railway, or, in other words, the Trans-Siberian. What is remarkable: this route passes through the territory of Russia, and this is the longest railway in the world, linking Europe and Asia.

When construction began

The construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway began in 1891. At that time, the future Emperor Nicholas II laid the first stone of the Ussuri railroad, not far from Vladivostok. At that time, it was not even expected that the construction would take on such a large scale. Only after a while the idea was put forward to create a railway line that would run to the European part of Russia.

On the recommendation of Witte, who initiated the project, a special committee was formed, the chairman of which was appointed Tsarevich Nicholas. The heir to the throne had previously made a long trip from the shores of the Pacific Ocean through the territory of Siberia, and given the scale of his empire, Nicholas II came to the conclusion that the project was necessary.

The value of the Trans-Siberian

This route connects Moscow with the country's major industrial cities located in the Far East and Eastern Siberia. In fact, the longest railway in the world crosses the entire territory of the country, connecting the capital and Vladivostok. To be more precise, it connects the European part of the country, Siberia, the Urals, the Far East, and, in general, ports to Europe and Asia.

The world's longest railway passes through 87 Russian cities, crossing two continents, 5 Central Federal Districts, 8 time zones. By the way, in percentage terms, the length of this railway route in the Asian part of the country is 81%, and the rest is in Europe. Not surprisingly, the Trans-Siberian is the world's largest railway. Where this highway is located and which continents it connects is clear from the above information.

Construction of a railway line from Asia to Europe

Now it seems incredible, but the longest railway in the world was built at a very fast pace: in 13.5 years (from 1891 to 1904), a path was laid from Miass and Kotlas to Vladivostok and Port Arthur. Considering the difficult conditions in which the workers worked on the construction of the highway, the speed of its construction was incredible, even by today's standards. At the same time, it is worth remembering that in those days the level of technical equipment was much lower than now.

The area in which the longest railway in the world was being built was mostly undeveloped by man before: most of it was occupied by areas where permafrost reigned, the steel track passed through large rivers and bridges. In the process of hard work, the workers had to overcome many difficulties in order to build this road. Bridges were laid across powerful Siberian rivers, tunnels were built, and other work was carried out that required a lot of effort and money.

And, finally, in October 1905, the end of this enormous work came up. September 18 (October 1), 1904 is considered the birthday of the Trans-Siberian Railway. It is worth noting that after this date, work did not stop for many years. So, the second track was completed in Soviet time namely in 1938.

As a result, now the most extreme points of the highway with respect to the cardinal points are: in the west - Moscow-3, in the east - Khabarovsk-2, from the north - Kirov, and from the south - Vladivostok. The beginning of the Trans-Siberian Railway is the Yaroslavsky railway station (Moscow), the end is the eastern outskirts of Russia (Vladivostok railway station).

The Siberian railway has no equal in the whole world in many respects, and not only in its size. The speed of construction, the scale of work, the severity of the conditions in which they had to work are impressive. It is impossible not to mention some facts related to the construction of the described path:

• As already noted, the project was implemented at a high pace - it amounted to 740 km per year, which is a serious indicator even for modern construction.
• As a result of continuous and hard work, the Western line of the road already in 1898 approached Irkutsk.
• Instead of various equipment, which now does most of the work, at that time a huge force of workers was involved. So, for example, in 1895-1896, about 90 thousand people participated in the construction. Among them, among others, were prisoners and soldiers.

• The highest point of the route is Yablonovy Pass - here the railway rises to 1019 m above sea level. It is located between Yablonovaya and Turgutui stations. The second highest point (900 m) is located near the Kizha station, and just below 900 m - Andrianovsky Pass.
• The most severe place in terms of climate through which the Trans-Siberian Railway passes is the section Mogocha - Skovorodino. The temperature here drops to -62°C, there is a permafrost zone.
• The fastest train goes from Moscow to Vladivostok in 6 days 2 hours.
• The mildest places in terms of climate are in the Vladivostok region. It should be noted that basically the entire length of the Trans-Siberian Railway passes through places with a harsh or temperate climate.
• It is noted that the actual length of the railway is somewhat less and is 9288.2 km (5772 miles). This figure is indicated on the sign, which is installed at the end of the highway, in Vladivostok. The sign in Moscow, denoting the zero kilometer, has two numbers: 0 and 9298 km. It indicates exactly the tariff length, according to which ticket prices are calculated.
• The complete electrification of the road was completed in 2002.
• In Europe, the length of the route was 1777 km, in Asia - 7512 km. The conditional border of these two continents is located at the 1778th kilometer of the Trans-Siberian Railway. In this place, near the city of Pervouralsk, a memorial sign called "The Border of Europe and Asia" was erected.

Branches from the main route of the Trans-Siberian

As we already know, the longest railway in the world connects Moscow and Vladivostok, but, in addition to the main line, there are several branches. Let's consider them in more detail.

In the period from 1940 to 1956, the Trans-Mongolian Highway was built: it ran between the city of Ulan-Ude and Beijing. The road from Ulan-Ude heads south, crossing the entire territory of Mongolia, and the final point is the capital of China. The distance between the two capitals along this highway is 7867 km.

At Karymskaya station there is another branch from the main route of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The railway line turns southeast after it, passing through Zabaikalsk and Manchuria. As well as the Trans-Mongolian Highway, it reaches the capital of China. The length of this route from Moscow to Beijing is almost 9,000 kilometers.

In 1984, the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM) was officially opened. The starting point of this path is the city of Taishet, and the final point is Sovetskaya Gavan (a city on the Pacific coast). BAM is located several hundred kilometers north of the Trans-Siberian Railway and runs parallel to the main railway.

Highway construction cost

Before starting the project for the construction of the Great Siberian Way, the costs that its construction would incur were calculated. The figure turned out to be considerable - 350 million rubles in gold. In order to reduce the cost of production, as well as to speed up its pace, simplified specifications were taken for the line that ran from Chelyabinsk to the Ob River. For the construction of the entire road, a huge amount had to be spent, equal to almost 1.5 billion rubles (in the money of that time).

Transsib - the great railway track

So, the Trans-Siberian Railway crosses 2 republics, 12 regions, 5 territories, 1 district, 1 autonomous region. The highway passes through 87 cities.

This railway crosses many of the largest rivers on its way (there are 16 in total): the Volga, Vyatka, Irtysh, Kama, Tobol, Yenisei, Tom, Chulym, Ussuri, Amur, Khor, Selenga, Oka, Bureya, Zeya. The widest crossing point among them is on the Amur River (2 km). The same figure for such rivers as the Ob and Yenisei is 1 km, since the railway passes through them only in the upper reaches.

The most dangerous river that the Trans-Siberian runs into along the way is the Khor. During the flood period, it can rise to a height of 9 m. And the Trans-Baikal Khilok River in 1897, during the flood period, caused the greatest harm to the highway in its entire history. She then destroyed most of the western section of the Transbaikal road. Following the Trans-Siberian Railway, you can see the world's deepest Lake Baikal. It goes along it for 207 km.

Now we know what the longest railway in the world is and where it is located. The scale of its construction is truly impressive, and for a long time it has kept its record for its length. The longest railway in the world, which is called the Trans-Siberian Railway, is the real pride of Russia.