Researched
Railway
Steam locomotives on iron rails beat horse and canal - land transport becomes fast, cheap and reliable.
Open in the interactive tree →Richard Trevithick ran the first steam locomotive in 1804; the Stockton & Darlington Railway opened public service in 1825, the Liverpool & Manchester scheduled service in 1830. The network spread across continents within a few decades, led to standard time and created mass markets.
Prerequisites
- Wheel~3500 BC
- Blast Furnace & Cast Iron~1400
- Joint-Stock Company & Exchange1602Railways were financed and built by joint-stock companies pooling investor capital
- Wood, Charcoal & Coal~1709Railways grew out of colliery wagonways and ran on coal
- Steam Engine1712
- Puddling & Rolling Mills1783-84Rolled wrought iron gave rails and boiler plate in bulk
Unlocks
- Underground Railway1863
- Electric Railway1879
- Standard Time & Time Zones1883-1884
- High-Speed Train1964
More in Transport & Mobility · Industrial Age
- Sextant1731
- Marine Chronometer1761
- Balloon Flight1783
- Aerodynamics & Gliders1799-1896
- Steamship1807
- Screw Propeller & Iron Hull1843
- Underground Railway1863
- Suez & Panama Canals1869-1914