Interesting facts about trains and railways. Interesting facts about the railway

Interesting fact number 1

Annually in Russia by rail used by 1,300,000,000 passengers. That is, every resident of Russia uses the train 9 times a year. However, this figure is far from the limit. In the USSR, there were 15 train trips for every person.

Interesting fact number 2

The longest railway is the Trans-Siberian Railway, which has a length of about 9300 kilometers.

Interesting fact number 3

The middle station of the Trans-Siberian Railway is called "Half". From it to Moscow and to Vladivostok the same distance.

Interesting fact number 4

The first railway was opened between St. Petersburg and Moscow, and the first three days of transportation were free of charge. Simply no one wanted to ride on such an unknown thing as a train.

Interesting fact number 5

If you want to work at Russian Railways, enter the railway institute in Krasnoyarsk.

Interesting fact number 6

In France, it is forbidden to kiss at train stations, as this often caused train delays. The law has been in force for 100 years, and no one has repealed it to this day.

Interesting fact number 7

RailroadIt is known that linemen who check the serviceability of train wheels have a sensitive ear for music. After all, they have to identify wheel defects by changing the tone of the knock.

Interesting fact number 8

On one of the trains that runs in western Peru, conductors provide oxygen bags to their passengers. The fact is that the train travels on the highest railway in the world, which is located at an altitude of about three kilometers.

Interesting fact number 9

Once, in the USA, in the state of Ohio, a train collided with a steamboat. Lake Ohio overflowed its banks at that moment, and the railroad plunged into a meter-thick water column. The driver, however, still decided to drive across the river, well, his way was blocked by a steamboat.

Interesting fact number 10

In Bavaria, in 1910, an order was issued on behalf of the local authorities, which forbade the drinking of beer by machinists and stokers during stops.

Interesting fact number 11

In Argentina, you can ride the famous Patagonia-Express train, which survived the heist of the century. Tourists who decide to ride this train will not only be able to enjoy the scenery outside the window, but also unwittingly take part in a planned performance that simulates a real train robbery.

Interesting fact number 12

In Argentina, you can now take a tour on the legendary Patagonia Express train, which was restored specifically for tourists. In addition to the impressions of the surrounding landscapes, passengers can become participants in the carefully planned "Train Robbery" action without their consent.

Interesting fact number 13

For several years there was railway route"Paris-Venice", where the special "Train of Love" ran. In the compartment of such a train was organized special service. At the disposal of the passengers was a TV, shower, and a special sleeping bunk for two people.

Interesting fact number 14

Once in Switzerland they organized a train tour, where the whole elite Swiss society: officials, honorary citizens, politicians, etc. For the occasion, the entire train was made up of restaurant cars. However, the organizers of this celebration did not take into account the fact that there are no toilets in dining cars in Switzerland. As a result, when the train reached its destination, the passengers jumped out of the cars, surprising all the citizens who had gathered to meet the guests of honor.

To create such a large-scale project as railways, a lot of effort, time and Money. Sometimes, the great design geniuses came to crazy decisions and created ridiculous situations. Curious cases have become frequent in this reform activity. And also with the development of high-speed transport, the theme of trains and long trips has been frequently mentioned in art - music, movies, theatrical performances; and even in politics. Here are the most interesting facts and references to railways:

1) Who lives at the bottom of the ocean?

In 1896 between English cities Brighton and Rottingdean began to run unusual vehicle called Daddy Long Legs - a cross between a tram and a ferry. Laying the railway overland on this route required a lot of engineering structures, and engineer Magnus Volk proposed laying the rails directly on the seabed - the total length of the track was 4.5 km. The platform with passengers towered over the rails on four supports 7 meters long and had a flag, lifeboat and other maritime attributes, as it was formally considered a ship. The service was canceled in 1901 when it was decided to build new breakwaters near Brighton, and the transfer of the track was considered too costly.

2) When and where did an uncontrolled train travel more than 100 km, accelerating to a speed of 76 km/h?

On May 15, 2001, in Ohio, USA, a railroad crew was moving a 47-car train from one track to another. Due to a technical error, an unmanned train called CSX 8888 picked up speed and left for independent travel, during which it accelerated to a speed of 76 km / h. Having traveled more than 100 km, the train was stopped by the driver of the diesel locomotive that caught up with him, who grappled with the last car and applied rheostatic braking.

3) What mechanism got its name from the name of the inventor of the bicycle prototype?

The prototype of the bicycle was designed and patented by the German baron Karl von Dres in 1818. This mechanism had a wooden frame, metal wheels and a steering wheel, but there were no pedals - in order for it to move, it was necessary to push off the ground with your feet. The surname of the inventor in the name of the bicycle was not fixed, but gave the name to the trolley - a device for moving on rails with mechanical traction.

4) How did Gorbachev's anti-alcohol campaign influence the lyrics of "Time Machine" songs?

During Gorbachev's anti-alcohol campaign, many works of art were censored. For example, Andrey Makarevich changed the text in the song “Conversation on the Train”: after the line “Carriage disputes are the last thing,” instead of “when there is nothing else to drink,” he began to sing “and you can’t cook porridge from them.”

5) What was the main reason for the transition to a time zone system in the 19th century?

Until the 19th century, there was no division into time zones, everywhere the time was determined by the Sun. There was no need for time zones, as there was no high-speed transport. Unification was driven by the development of railways in England, because due to time differences in each city it was very difficult to draw up a normal timetable. It was the railway companies who ensured that there was one GMT time zone throughout the country. And then gradually the system of time zones began to spread around the world.

6) Who was the victim of the murderer, whose brother had previously saved the life of the son of the murdered?

US President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in a theater by John Booth in 1865. Shortly before this, by coincidence, the brother of the latter, Edwin Booth, saved the life of the president's son, Robert Lincoln, on a railway platform.

7) Where did the train crash occur due to the language barrier?

In 2001, there was a railway accident in Belgium in which 8 people, including both drivers, died as a result of a head-on collision of trains. Among other accidents, this one is unique in that it main reason became a language barrier. When the driver of the first train left the station despite the red signal, the dispatcher called the next station to warn about it. However, the controllers did not understand each other, as one spoke French and the other Dutch. Both of these languages ​​are official in Belgium, and according to the rules of the railway company, staff must know at least one of them.

8) What accident did the Americans arrange in 1896 for the entertainment of the public?

In 1896, one of the American railroad companies staged a show - a deliberate collision of two trains at full speed. 40,000 tickets were sold for the "performance", and a temporary campus was built for the spectators who bought tickets. However, the engineers miscalculated the force of the blast and the crowd was not withdrawn to a safe enough distance, resulting in three deaths and several others being injured.

9) What were military armored rubbers?

It is known that in the wars of the 19th century, the First and Second World Wars, many countries used armored trains. However, in addition to this, they tried to fight with the help of individual combat units - armored rubber. They were almost like tanks, but limited in movement only by rails.

10) Series Y?

From 1910 to 1920, freight steam locomotives of the Y series were mass-produced in Russia.

11) Why did the direct railway between Moscow and St. Petersburg have a curvilinear bend in one place?

The Oktyabrskaya railway connecting Moscow and St. Petersburg is now a collection of straight lines, although there used to be a slight curvilinear bend between Okulovka and Malaya Vishera. There is a legend that when designing the road, Emperor Nicholas I personally drew a straight line between the two capitals, and the bend arose due to the fact that the pencil went around the finger attached to the ruler.

In fact, there was a height difference in that place, which made it difficult for trains driven by low-powered locomotives to move. In order not to hook an additional locomotive, a detour was created.

12) Who and where managed to survive and not become disabled after his brain was pierced by an iron crowbar?

In 1848, an American railroad worker, Phineas Gage, suffered a work injury when a metal rod pierced the frontal lobes of his brain, entering through his left cheek and exiting near the top of his head. Less than an hour later, Gage came to his senses, and then went to the hospital and on the way calmly and calmly talked about the hole in his head. The wound developed an infection, but the worker recovered and lived another 12 years. His memory, speech, perception were not disturbed, only his character changed - he became more irritable and lost his inclination to work.

13) What myth of the Soviet times about the film "The Arrival of the Train" is still alive?

Contrary to popular belief (which even got into the Soviet textbook on the history of foreign cinema), the film "The Arrival of the Train" was not shown at the famous first paid film show in Paris in the basement of the "Grand Cafe" on the Boulevard des Capucines.

14) What was the name of the city where Anna Karenina threw herself under the train?

In the novel by Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina threw herself under a train at the Obiralovka station near Moscow. In Soviet times, this village became a city and was renamed Zheleznodorozhny.

15) Who invented Morse code?

Morse code in its usual form was not invented by Morse, but by the German engineer Gercke. The original Morse code was inconvenient, although it was used on some American railroads well into the 1960s.

16) Who has more?

An interesting fact is that the gauge of the railway in Russia is 8 centimeters more than in Europe. There is an epic that when Russian engineers came to the tsar and asked how wide the track should be, the same as in Europe or more, he replied: nah ... more. So they made the track exactly so much wider. The width of the European railway gauge was adopted long before the invention of the steam locomotive.

17) Whose standard?

The railway track corresponds exactly to the distance between the wheels of the ancient Roman chariots, with which the Romans made conquests in the territories of modern England and France. The peoples of Europe made their chariots according to Roman models, this standard was also taken into account in the construction of railways.

18) Mail trains under escort

In the early days of the existence of the Nikolaev railway, the mail was especially vigilantly guarded along the entire route. To this end mail trains went under the escort of mounted gendarmes, galloping at full speed along the railway.

19) Rescue benches

Third-class carriages on the first Russian railways were installed in front of the train, were equipped with hard benches, but ... did not have a roof, and therefore passengers often traveled under the benches, where they escaped from the sparks that flew out of the locomotive chimney in sheaves, and cold.

20) Paradoxical Love

The most paradoxical is the fact that with a small length of Russian railways (only 7 percent of the world's total railway figure), the Russian Federation accounts for about 35 percent of the world's rail freight traffic. These figures are explained by the unusual popularity of railways among Russian businessmen, and preference for this type of transport is given both by the owners of large enterprises and individual entrepreneurs requiring transportation of small consignments.
The reason for such love of the Russian people, and indeed everything former USSR, to the railways is easy to explain, if we remember, at least, the fact that this species transport is considered the safest. Let the speed of delivery leave much to be desired, but you can always be sure that the cargo will arrive at its destination safe and sound. After all, according to statistics, accidents on the railway happen ten times less often than on highways, and in every news release, reports of another plane crash have become a common occurrence. A high level of safety is especially important when transporting valuable and fragile products, and such products make up a significant part of the total cargo flow today. As long as planes are falling, and roads, as you know, continue to be one of the main problems of the CIS, trains will occupy a leading position in the freight transportation market. It is no secret that in the remote corners of our countries, many roads in the spring-autumn period simply become impassable, so delivery by train remains generally the only possible option.
An important factor in favor of choosing rail freight is their relatively low cost. You simply cannot find a more profitable transport for transporting timber and building materials. There are also no restrictions on the types of cargo - bulk, bulk, volatile and food - it is possible to transport flour and cement, coal and alcohol. All that needs to be done by the owner of the cargo is to choose a suitable container (wagon, gondola car, platform, tank, refrigerator).
But with all the economic attractiveness and reliability, rail freight has a number of disadvantages.
First, in small towns there are simply no railway stations, so you still have to use by car to deliver the goods to their destination. Secondly, there are a number of difficulties associated with different requirements for transportation technology in different countries. Therefore, international cargo transportation requires knowledge of many nuances and the ability to establish friendly foreign economic relations.
Today, transport companies, in order to ensure maximum comfort for the customer and the recipient of the cargo, develop a logistics scheme for each individual cargo, coordinate the features and conditions of transportation based on the characteristics of the product, and provide clear information about the train route and the time of its arrival at the station.

21) The first mechanical (not hand or horse-drawn) elevator driven by a steam engine, called the "vertical railway", was installed in the United States in 1850. By the 1880s, large hotels and wealthy buildings in the US and Europe were equipped with this type of elevator.

22) The "Underground Railroad" in the United States in the 1850s was the name given to a secret organization of abolitionists ( social movement, seeking the abolition of slavery), transporting fugitive blacks from the South to the North.

1. Two lengths of the equator.

total length railway lines owned by Russian Railways - 85.2 thousand km. If all the existing Russian Railways rails were laid out along the equator, then it would be enough for two circles and a little more would be left. Moreover, one of these two circles was electrified and electric trains and electric locomotives could go along it. The second circle would remain exclusively for diesel locomotives smoking the sky from a pipe. The length of electrified lines is 42.9 thousand km.

2. Russian railways consume up to 6% of all electricity produced in the country, or 44 billion kWh per year, and 10% of diesel fuel.

3. high speed trains- the pride of Russian Railways. Their photographs are printed on posters and in booklets, banners with their advertisements hang everywhere on the company's website. Today, Russian Railways has five trains, which are called high-speed. Two of them - "Sapsan" and "Nevsky Express" - run between Moscow and St. Petersburg, between Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod there are "Sapsan", "Petrel" (twin brother of "Nevsky Express") and "Swallow". And from St. Petersburg to Helsinki goes "Allegro". The fastest of them are Sapsan and Allegro, in some places they travel up to 220 km/h.

4. The longest train route is Kharkov - Vladivostok (No. 053), the distance is 9722 km (in reverse side- 9715 km).

The longest direct routes are 10,267 km: Moscow  Pyongyang via Khabarovsk (direct car to train No. 001/002 Moscow Vladivostok) and Kyiv → Vladivostok (direct car to train No. 053 Kharkov  Vladivostok).

5. The railway line rises to the highest point on the Trans-Siberian between Turgutui and Yablonovaya stations. The train moves here at an altitude of 1040 meters. The second place in terms of height above sea level is occupied by the Kizha station, which is west of the Petrovsky Zavod, the height of which is more than 900 meters. And on the third place of the high-rise pedestal is Andrianovsky Pass, which is located west of Lake Baikal. Its height reaches 900 meters.

6. The coldest place on the railway is located on the section of the Trans-Siberian Railway between the villages of Mogocha and Skovorodino. Interestingly, this site is not the northernmost in terms of geography, but the coldest in terms of climate. This place can be called a real cold pole, as the temperature in winter here sometimes drops to -62 degrees. It is hard to imagine how a railway was once laid in the permafrost zone.

7. Every year 1,300,000,000 passengers use rail transport in Russia. That is, every resident of Russia uses the train 9 times a year. However, this figure is far from the limit. In the USSR, there were 15 train trips for every person.

8. The Trans-Siberian Railway is considered the longest railway not only in Russia, but throughout the world. The length of this railway from Nakhodka to Moscow is 9438 kilometers. There are 97 major stations on this road.

9. The middle station of the Trans-Siberian is called “Half”. From it to Moscow and to Vladivostok the same distance.

10. Before the revolution in Russia, there was the eponymous Main Society of Russian Railways, formed on January 26, 1857 in accordance with the imperial decree of Alexander II. The founders of the society were Russian, Polish, English and French bankers. The capital of the company was 275 million silver rubles. The first chairman of the Management Board of the society was Baron Peter Kazimirovich Meyendorff, and the chief director was Karl Koldinon, the chief inspector of bridges and roads in France.

In which country did a cat work as a stationmaster and attract many new clients?

In 2006, a Japanese railway company in Wakayama Prefecture hired part-time caretakers for small stations in order to optimize costs. One of the new employees took care of several stray cats, and soon one of them named Tama was officially appointed as the stationmaster. Her main duty was to greet passengers in a branded cap, and the news about this significantly increased their flow. It was estimated that Tama's appointment contributed over a billion yen to the local economy. For these accomplishments, Tama was promoted to CEO and served with the company until her death in 2015.

Which country produced an armored car that could move both on tracks and on rails?

Planning expansion into China and Siberia, the Japanese developed a special Type 2595 "So-Ki" armored car in the 1930s. Its distinctive advantage was the possibility of movement both on caterpillar tracks and on railroads. Transferring the car from tracks to wheels took three minutes, back - just a minute. Armament consisted of one machine gun in a conical turret. "So-Ki", being able to reach speeds on rails up to 72 km / h, was widely used in China for transportation and patrolling.

Why does the train reverse before moving forward?

If the driver of a heavy freight train tries to start moving sharply forward, then the train may not budge, since the total static friction force acting from the side of the rails on the wheels of the cars will exceed the sliding force of the driving wheels of the locomotive. Often, the operator must first back up to loosen the hitch tension. And only then go forward, setting the cars in motion one by one.

Which country has a market with a railroad right in the middle?

Right in the middle of the Maeklong Market in Thailand, there is a railway track that runs every day. Warned by the siren, the sellers are able to quickly roll up the sheds and remove the goods, and then just as quickly return everything back, and the trade continues. Many vegetables and fruits remain lying on the ground right next to the rails, as the composition does not touch them. When the road was laid in 1905, they wanted to move the market to the side, but its workers chose to stay and adapt.

Where and when did a baboon who did not make a single mistake work as a railway signalman?

At the end of the 19th century, James Wide worked as a signalman on the railway tracks of the port of Cape Town, having lost both legs in an accident. After some time, he bought a baboon Jack in the market, whom he trained to carry him on a cart between the hut and the signal box, and also to help him switch signals using levers. One day, the railroad management received a complaint, and Wide was almost fired, but he asked to test the abilities of the baboon, who did well in all the tests and was enrolled in the staff. Jack worked as a signalman until his death and is said to have never made a single mistake.

Where does the train run that you can hitchhike at any point on its route?

The Hurricane Turn train runs in Alaska between Talkeetna and Hurricane Gulch. The length of the route is just under 93 km, and there are no intermediate stations along this distance. But at any point along the way, those wishing to board the train can stop it by waving a white cloth.

Which toy part was used in the first electrocardiograph?

The first version of the design of the electrocardiograph was developed in 1887 by Augustus Waller, an employee of the London hospital, and included a platform from a toy railway. On it was a movable photographic plate on which the cardiogram was recorded. However, due to the weak sensitivity of the electrometer used, Waller's apparatus was not yet suitable for a full-fledged diagnosis.

What intellectual abilities are revealed in slime molds?

Slime molds are organisms of the kingdom of protozoa. At different stages of development, they either have the appearance of mucus from a single multinucleated cell, or take on a more solid form, similar to the fruiting body of fungi, but in any case do not even have a hint of a nervous system. However, several studies have identified the "intellectual" abilities of Physarum polycephalum slime molds. For example, they can take the shortest path through a labyrinth, at the entrance and exit of which pieces of food are placed. In another study, scientists arranged oatmeal to match the size and position of Japanese capital Tokyo and its 36 suburbs, and the slime mold has built a structure similar to the existing railroad network.

What were the chauffeurs doing in the first place?

The word "chauffeur" was originally called people who did not drive a vehicle, but threw coal or firewood into the furnace of the engine room. Literally translated from French, from where it came to us, chauffeur means "stoker, stoker." Since the engine of the first cars was Steam engine, the drivers had to melt it, therefore, by analogy with the stokers of steam locomotives, they also began to be called drivers.

Where is the railway laid, in the train cars of which oxygen is supplied?

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway in China is the highest in the world, climbing at the highest high point to a height of more than 5 kilometers. For this road trains have been developed with special wagons in which oxygen is supplied. In addition, each passenger can wear an individual oxygen mask.

Where do trains run with wagons tilting when turning?

In 1973, railways in Japan were the first to use trains with wagons that tilted when turning, allowing them to pass turns on more speed. The original technology was imperfect and caused seasickness in passengers, so it was not widely adopted. Modern systems based on digital signal processing that actively control the inclination of each car have eliminated this problem, and now such trains are used in a dozen and a half countries from Australia to Norway.

When and where did the tram run on rails laid at the bottom of the sea?

In 1896, between the English cities of Brighton and Rottingdean, an unusual vehicle called Daddy Long Legs began to run - a cross between a tram and a ferry. Laying the railway overland on this route required a lot of engineering structures, and engineer Magnus Volk proposed laying the rails directly on the seabed - the total length of the track was 4.5 km. The platform with passengers rose above the rails on four pillars 7 meters long and had a flag, a lifeboat and other maritime attributes, as it was formally considered a ship. The service was canceled in 1901 when it was decided to build new breakwaters near Brighton, and the transfer of the track was considered too costly.

When and where did an uncontrolled train travel more than 100 km, accelerating to a speed of 76 km/h?

On May 15, 2001, in Ohio, USA, a railroad crew was moving a 47-car train from one track to another. Due to a technical error, an unmanned train called CSX 8888 picked up speed and went on an independent journey, during which it accelerated to a speed of 76 km / h. Having traveled more than 100 km, the train was stopped by the driver of the diesel locomotive that caught up with him, who grappled with the last car and applied rheostatic braking.

Which mechanism is named after the inventor of the prototype bicycle?

The prototype of the bicycle was designed and patented by the German baron Karl von Dres in 1818. This mechanism had a wooden frame, metal wheels and a steering wheel, but there were no pedals - in order for it to move, it was necessary to push off the ground with your feet. The surname of the inventor in the name of the bicycle was not fixed, but gave the name to the trolley - a device for moving on rails with mechanical traction.

How did the anti-alcohol campaign affect the lyrics of The Time Machine?

During Gorbachev's anti-alcohol campaign, many works of art were censored. For example, Andrey Makarevich changed the text in the song “Conversation on the Train”: after the line “Carriage disputes are the last thing,” instead of “when there is nothing else to drink,” he began to sing “and you can’t cook porridge from them.”

What was the main reason for the transition to a time zone system in the 19th century?

Until the 19th century, there was no division into time zones, everywhere the time was determined by the Sun. There was no need for time zones, as there was no high-speed transport. Unification was driven by the development of railways in England, because due to time differences in each city it was very difficult to draw up a normal timetable. It was the railway companies who ensured that there was one GMT time zone throughout the country. And then gradually the system of time zones began to spread around the world.

Who was the victim of the murderer, whose brother had previously saved the life of the son of the victim?

US President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in a theater by John Booth in 1865. Shortly before this, by coincidence, the brother of the latter, Edwin Booth, saved the life of the president's son, Robert Lincoln, on a railway platform.

Where did the train crash happen due to the language barrier?

In 2001, there was a railway accident in Belgium in which 8 people, including both drivers, died as a result of a head-on collision of trains. Among other accidents, this one is unique in that its main cause was the language barrier. When the driver of the first train left the station despite the red traffic light, the dispatcher called the next station to warn about it. However, the controllers did not understand each other, as one spoke French and the other Dutch. Both of these languages ​​are official in Belgium, and according to the rules of the railway company, staff must know at least one of them.

What accident did the Americans stage in 1896 for the entertainment of the public?

In 1896, one of the American railroad companies staged a show - a deliberate collision of two trains at full speed. 40,000 tickets were sold for the "performance", and a temporary campus was built for the spectators who bought tickets. However, the engineers miscalculated the force of the blast and the crowd was not withdrawn to a safe enough distance, resulting in three deaths and several others being injured.

What were military armored tires?

In Russia, the possibility of a railway was discussed back in the twenties of the 19th century, when the emperor learned that the railway saves treasury expenses and even increases wealth, as happens in England (at that time, rails were used to transport coal).

So that the zealots of progress would not be discouraged and would not think that the necessary road would never be built in St. Petersburg, they added that the Moscow-Petersburg line would appear "not before the end of the road ... and on inquiry from the experience of the benefits of such roads for the state, public and shareholders.

How to raise money for construction

Speaking of shareholders, it is worth noting that 700 people took part in the purchase of the relevant securities. To create capital, fifteen thousand shares were issued. The required amount of three million rubles was collected by subscription within six months.

Count Bobrinsky became one of the main sponsors of the railway. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

One of the ardent supporters of the construction was the famous sugar manufacturer, Count Aleksey Alekseevich Bobrinsky, the son of Major General Alexei Bobrinsky, born in an extramarital affair between Catherine II and Grigory Orlov. The grandson of the great empress acquired shares worth 250 thousand rubles.

Road opening

On November 11, 1837, the road was officially opened. For the sake of such a solemn occasion, Nicholas I and his wife were invited.

A prayer service was served on the station tracks, Gerstner, as a driver, got into the cab of a steam locomotive, and at half past one the train, to loud exclamations of surprise and approval, moved towards Pavlovsk, where it arrived thirty-five minutes later. Max Speed the first steam locomotive was 64 kilometers per hour, but for the safety of passengers on the first trip, the amazing car did not show all its strength.

Steel horse locomotive

Gerstner personally was the first to travel by rail. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

In the Vedomosti newspaper that day one could read a note: “It was Saturday, the townspeople flocked to the old regimental church of the Introduction near Semenovsky parade ground. They knew that an unusual railroad was opening and "a steel horse carrying many, many carriages at once" would set off for the first time.

However, not everyone managed to see the first train. Commoners were not allowed to the station itself, which had been built recently.

Exactly at 12:30 pm, a tiny locomotive blew a piercing whistle, and eight cars with a noble audience set off along the route Petersburg - Tsarskoye Selo.

The first days of operation of the road were trial, the passage is free, and the quality, as they say, is at the risk of the buyer.

However, there were no dissatisfied people: up to fifty people were packed into each of the cars - people of humble origin were given the opportunity to try out the new transport.

Despite the fact that the road had serious problems, the people considered the invention a kind of carousel: fast driving, a breeze blowing in the face, the smell of fields and arable land, and a slight fright at the sounds of an oncoming train.

The excitement was monstrous, and the crowds that besieged the locomotive were endless.

What did the wagons look like at the time?

The carriages on the train were divided along social lines. So, a train of eight wagons and a steam locomotive, which was built at the Stephenson factory in England and delivered to St. Petersburg by sea, consisted of four classes.

The most luxurious and vividly demonstrating the thickness of the gentleman’s wallet, who could afford to buy tickets for it, were the so-called “Berlins” - here the public could sit more relaxed in an easy chair, and people from the same social stratum sat opposite and to the side. There were eight such cars in total, followed by "stagecoaches" that could accommodate a large number of people and "rulers" - wagons open type. Those that were with a roof were called “chaises”, those that did not have one were called “waggons”. The latter had neither heating nor lighting.

In the early years, the fare for first and second class passengers was 2.5 and 1.8 rubles and 80 and 40 kopecks for third and fourth. It is curious, but, despite the fact that the train was designed not only to cover long distances, but also to keep pace with progress, until 1838, only horse traction was used on non-Sundays and holidays. The steam method has become a kind of symbol of festivities or Sunday rest.

Imperial way

Since 1838, the movement has become regular and then finally decided on the schedule. The first train departed at nine o'clock in the morning, and the last at ten o'clock in the evening. The interval between movements was three or four hours.

Members of the Romanov family and European monarchs also used the railway. Only one train could move along the so-called "Imperial Way". In Pushkin, the train stopped at the "Imperial Pavilion" - the station where they met the royal family.

Traffic along the line Tsarskoe Selo - Pavlovsk was opened in May 1838. By the significant day they built concert hall where Johann Strauss himself performed.

Steam locomotive "Elephant" and "Bogatyr"

Steam locomotives at that time were made at seven factories: in Belgium, England, Germany and the St. Petersburg Leuchtenberg plant. Each locomotive had its own name: "Nimble", "Arrow", "Bogatyr", "Elephant", "Eagle" and "Lion". However, the romantic attitude towards the locomotive soon changed, and the jubilation at the sight of it was replaced by a habit, and instead of names, the trains acquired a dry number and a series of letters.

People often went to the Pavlovsky Musical Station just for entertainment. Photo: commons.wikimedia.org

Despite the initial fear of shareholders not to make a profit from the enterprise, in the first five years, not only all the funds spent on construction, but also what was spent on operation were repaid: the road brought substantial income and allowed us to assume that the further construction of new stations would bring a truly fabulous income.

The first steam locomotive was a revelation for Petersburgers: they wrote about it in newspapers, drew posters, candy wrappers were full of its image, and the Alexandrinsky Theater even included the vaudeville “A Trip to Tsarskoye Selo”, the main character of which was a steam locomotive.