Geography · Ch 7 — Transport and Communication
Trans–Continental Railways
Trans–Continental Railways
Trans–Continental Railways
A trans–continental railway is a rail line that runs across an entire continent, linking its two opposite ends. These railways were built primarily for two reasons: economic integration and political unification. By enabling long-distance travel and freight movement in different directions, they helped open up interior regions and connect distant markets.
The textbook discusses six major trans–continental railways of the world.
1. Trans–Siberian Railway
This is the most important railway route in Asia and the longest double-tracked, electrified trans–continental railway in the world, stretching 9,332 km. It runs from St. Petersburg in the west to Vladivostok on the Pacific Coast in the east, passing through Moscow, Ufa, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Chita, and Khabarovsk. The line crosses the Ural Mountains and the Ob and Yenisei rivers.
Its construction helped open up Russia's vast Asian region to West European markets. Along the route, Chita is an important agro-centre, and Irkutsk is a fur centre. The railway has several connecting links to the south: to Odessa (Ukraine), Baku on the Caspian Coast, Tashkent (Uzbekistan), Ulan Bator (Mongolia), and Shenyang (Mukden) and Beijing in China.
2. Trans–Canadian Railway
This 7,050 km long rail-line runs from Halifax on the east coast to Vancouver on the Pacific Coast, passing through Montreal, Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Calgary. It was constructed in 1886, initially as part of a political agreement to persuade British Columbia on the west coast to join the Federation of States.
Later, the railway gained great economic significance. It connected the Quebec-Montreal Industrial Region with the wheat belt of the Prairie Region and the coniferous forest region in the north. Each of these regions became complementary to the other. A loop line from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay (on Lake Superior) connects this rail-line with one of the world's important waterways. This line is considered the economic artery of Canada. Wheat and meat are the important exports carried on this route.
3. The Union and Pacific Railway
This rail-line connects New York on the Atlantic Coast to San Francisco on the Pacific Coast, passing through Cleveland, Chicago, Omaha, Evans, Ogden, and Sacramento. The most valuable exports on this route are ores, grain, paper, chemicals, and machinery.
4. The Australian Trans–Continental Railway
This rail-line runs west-east across the southern part of the Australian continent, from Perth on the west coast to Sydney on the east coast, passing through Kalgoorlie, Broken Hill, and Port Augusta. Another major north-south line connects Adelaide and Alice Springs, and is to be joined further to the Darwin–Birdum line.