From 1982 to 1984, the tourist-attracting cable tram underwent an overhaul and a new powerhouse by General Electric. However, the city realized that it would lose tourist dollars if the cable tram didn’t run, so they started running old trams on Market Street instead and hoped the tourists would keep Read more
The Rhätische Bahn, or Rhaetian Railway in English, operates all the internal railways of the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It’s one of the more eccentric private railways in the countries that seems to still operate in the 1970s. The trains are old but well-kept and the facilities are classic, Read more
There are no good airports serving New York City, Trump’s helicopter service failed and the traffic is atrocious. Turns out, the right way to get to the Big Apple is by pulling into Pen Station on the Maple Leaf Amtrak service from Toronto in business class. The premium service with Read more
Scranton had a trolley system from 1896 to 1954, the first economically sustainable system in America. The Lackawanna valley was rich in anthracite, top-notch coal, and the trolleys were powered from the nearby coal-fired power plant via a third rail, unusual for interurbans. But one line, the Northern Electric Railway, Read more
Perhaps the smallest museum in Toronto, but not the least interesting (that award goes to the Toronto Police Museum). The Toronto Railway Museum makes its home in a railroad roundhouse shared with restaurants and bars. The roundhouse used to serve nearby Union Station, it’s an excellent example of adaptive reuse Read more
I have mixed feelings about taking the train in Canada. Although Via Rail may feel normal to the uninitiated traveler, it’s at least odd even by American standards. Where to begin? I traveled between Ottawa and Toronto, about 4.5 hours each way, but there was no buffet car. The only Read more
Dresden’s funicular railway is one of the few notable sites that survived the bombings of WWII. Its two carriages, original from when the railway opened in 1895, were hidden in a tunnelled section and spared from destruction. I also wanted to ride on the Schwebebahn, a hanging railway nearby, but Read more
Stuttgart is built on hilly terrain – perfect for a fun drive. Maybe that’s why both Porsche and Mercedes-Benz are based in the city. But if you don’t drive, local public transportation will have you covered with two urban railway lines designed for uphill (and downhill) travel. The Stuttgart Rack Read more
Stuttgart is built on hilly terrain – perfect for a fun drive. Maybe that’s why both Porsche and Mercedes-Benz are based in the city. But if you don’t drive, local public transportation will have you covered with two urban railway lines designed for uphill (and downhill) travel. The Stuttgart Rack Read more
Berlin’s tramway network stretches to nearly 200 km. But not all of Berlin’s trams are accounted for in this figure. After I visited every single S-Bahn and U-Bahn stop, I went to every single tram stop in Berlin. Part of that included the extended overland tramway. Three lines, the 87 Read more