I love to travel by train most of all. My country has trains but the fares are quite expensive. I have inter railed around Europe, taken long distance trains in Australia and been on scenic train rides in New Zealand.
Does your country have a train system?
If so what is it like?
If not what alternative forms of transport have go got?
[question posted by maximax8]
responses and comments:
I stay in Germany and the train systems are excellent. I mean the conditions of the trains are very good, very fast, very clean and 70% of them are on time. But yes they are very expensive. Specially the ICE's. But its fun to travel in train once or twice. One does not have to bother about driving and can enjoy the scenic beauty. [rup011]
It is excellent to get your response. Germany has a great train service and it also commands high prices. When I was younger I used to get the weekend wonder ticket for traveling around on the slower trains. One weekend I made it all the way to Bamberg from the Dutch border. [maximax8]
There are train systems in the country I live in. We have subways that can bring us from either directions of the city. However, it can still be greatly improved by extending the destination from the city to other cities and perhaps other provinces. [Muelitz]
One way of traveling is with a rail pass, this can be very cost effective. It seems that you have a train system that could be improved but the subway system sounds superb. Thanks for your wonderful response. [maximax8]
We have two main railway systems, Canadian National and the Canadian Pacific Railway, most of the time they haul freights, but there are passenger trains but they are not as comfortable as the Amtrack in the States. There is also the PGE in British Columbia that is mainly for tourists. The CN and The CP go across the country and in some cities it is either or. I used to go on the train when I was little, but I did not like it much. It was not comfortable as we did not go by coach. We went on the seats with most others. [suspenseful]
The train system in Canada sounds wonderful. I would like to begin in Vancouver and travel all the way to Halifax by train. I could do this on a 12 days in 30 days train pass. I would stop off in the Rockies, Toronto, Montreal, Niagara Fall and hop over to Prince Edward Island. There is even a train line to Churchill where the polar bears can be seen. I haven't been to Canada yet but have traveled in California on Amtrak. I had two trains that were 5 hours late but the seats were comfortable. [maximax8]
Not where I live now, but when I lived in New York we did. The trains there are not the best, not by far. I hated traveling on them. They are always dirty, crowded, & very noisey. I would never travel on the trains at night especially if I was by myself. It's too dangerous. Anything could happen to you. It was so hard traveling with my kids when they were still small. We had to take two trains to visit my mother & sister. One of my kids was in a baby carriage & I had to slowly take each step at a time till we reached the bottom. No one ever offered to help me either. People are just rude that way in N.Y. I would have 3 kids with me & one in a baby carriage & no one offered to help me with the carriage. Thank goodness I no longer have to deal with the NY subway system. [Grandmahelen49]
Grandmahelen49 and Webeishere it was a shame that the people in New York were rude and not at all helpful. Grandmahelen49 I have a toddler son and took him to Latvia this year. People helped me on the train and I found them talkative as well as friendly. I struggle on to trains high off the ground with my child's pushchair in my home country, often people help me. [maximax8]
We ave Amtrak here in Minnesota and the United States. I have never ridden the train though. Well not since I was like 5 years old. I can't recall that far back either. But my guess is that it would be a lot cheaper than driving by car. Amtrak travels from one end of the country to the other on a daily basis as well. HAPPY POSTINGS FROM GRANDPA BOB !!~ [webeishere]
I have traveled on Amtrak in California. I liked it. I arrived at midnight, five hours late so I got a free $40 fare to where I was staying. That kind of hospitality would not happen in my home country. Yes, petrol is expensive so driving a car can be pricey, the train might be cheaper. Amtrak has a web site that you can sometimes get special offers on. [maximax8]
I love to travel by train as well :) I did the inter rail thing 3 times when I was back in Europe and it really was a great way to travel without spending much money. In here there I haven't used the train that much but have been in it a few times. IN here we usually travel all the 4 of us and taking the car makes more sense. [arkaf61]
We used to do that too. Catch the overnight trains. It saved us a lot of money LOL [arkaf61]
The Philippines has the metrorail transit that one can practically and affordably crisscrossed around the capital with ease. Many ride it to avoid the heavy traffic. There is also one railway that runs to the South and West of the capital but few I know of have rode it, including me. The reason is that it is ill maintained and all cars on the highway easily overtake it for its slowness. I now live in Taiwan which has a good train system. There are two kinds of railway, the high-speed rail and the ordinary rail. The high-speed train flies magnetically from Taipei in the north to Kaoshiung in the south in 1.6 hours for US$52 one way. Two kinds of trains run on the ordinary rail, the express train that stops only on major cities take 4.6 hours for half the price of the high-speed train and the electric train for half the price of the express train stops at every station and thus takes more than 7 hours one way. [2timothy]
Manila Philippines is quite famous for its heavy traffic...HUHUHU. Yes, we have the MRT and the LRT. I hope i got there meanings correct= metrorail transit and light rail transit. and yes,they only crisscross around Manila. I made a mistake of taking it during a rush hour-- I thought I would die inside-LOL. from then on,no more trains on rush hours. the trains are well ventilated though.airconditioner is good.and fast too.with the rise of gasoline, people leave their cars on a certain point then take the train...I am lucky drivers are not hard to find. so a regular driver drives my car around. I always see this railroads going to Manila proper,but I've never seen a train.they said its bound for the south of Manila. [chingbeem]
There are trains and trams in various parts of Australia but none that cover the country area where I live. Here, we are dependent on cars to get around as there is NO public transport system apart from school buses. I have always thought it would be wonderful to catch the Ghan train up the centre of Australia from Adelaide to Darwin. [Piscesmoon]
I loved traveling on trains when I was in Australia. I got the train from Adelaide to Melbourne, from Cairns to Brisbane and from Banbury to Perth. I sat in a seat rather than slept in a sleeper. I hope that you catch the Ghan one day from Adelaide to Darwin via Alice Springs. [maximax8]
Amtrack runs east coast to west coast and from the southern states to the northern ones and several of the larger area of the country have their own mass transit train systems. New York has the underground sumway system that runs all over the NY area. San Francisco has the BART which runs all around the Bay area. There are a couple of others that I am forgetting but still serve the purpose for the areas of the country they serve. Great way to travel. [eeyore39]
Yes, we have three lines but it does not cross great distances. At least, it is very helpful, it takes only a few minutes to travel a hundred kilometers. [jaypeemanuel]
its a very good train system which i come-a-crossed here in germany n all around europe. but this kind of train system i dont find in india. its just lot of difference between here n there. i usually dont travel by trian so i dont know much about it but a few times we had taken train from franfurt ,in stutgart, in paris when we were there on a trip, n also in switzerland. i felt really surprised when i saw it for the first time, i felt surprised not by seeing train but the punctuality n the timings of the train which u never find it in india. n the connections of the train r so easier to find out, its just so simple to travel by trin once u know the details or get exposed to train travel. i feel free to travel by train as u can just sit n have fun seeing the nature through train n play with my son n dont need any concentration as u do it while driving. [icegermany]
I live in England and we have a train system, but I think I have only used it once, when I was travelling to York. I tend not too go very far, so I do not need to get the train. However we have a local "train" called the Metro that I get daily when I go to college, it goes around my wider local area. I like it as it is a quick mode of transport and more often or not it is on time as it does not get stuck in traffic jams with rush hour traffic. It is cheaper than getting the bus for the distance I travel. I pay £350 a year for a travel pass. [Elixiress]
My country's train system is developping very fast, now the express railways have already put into operation in some areas, more are under construction. We prefer to take train for travel, it is cheap, safe, comfortable and sometimes quicker than by airplane. [snebxu66]
I am living in India. India has the largest train system as it has to support a large population. For long distance traveling a middle class person prefers to travel by train as it is very comfortable and the price is reasonable too. Apart form that local trains are very popular in Mumbai. Its very cheap and very convenient too, as journey by car is quite painful because of traffic. Even people from from high class families prefer to travel in local trains in Mumbai. [karjyo]
I live in the united states so ofcourse we have a train system to accomadate all the billions of people who live here.The train system is nice for the most part and it helpswhen you dont have a car to get around.The trains are for the people who cant afford a car or they just like the convienience of the train.The trainsare located underground in the tunnels of new york city.The trains ride really fast and they go very far for the money that you spend.It cost $2.00 to ride the train anywhere in new york city.You must come here and ride it one day. [Harmonie]
Hi, we have a train system that goes down the length of the country (north-south). It's not that pricey, and quite enjoyable. However it takes time, for example, if I were to drive or take a bus from my city to another town in the north, it only takes 3-4 hours. By train, it could take 7-8 hours. But if I have all the time, I'd travel by train - it is relaxing, and you get to watch the countryside or small towns that the train passes through! happy [lazeebee]
AWwwww in malaysia, we don't have train in most state. zzz~ [sparkliquid]
Yea, my country India has the largest train system in Asia. But the experience isn't that nice. The trains are dirty, almost never on time, bad on-train food et al. The fares aren't that expensive though. [velah1]
yeah in my country there is but only in Manila the biggest city. not in my area of Bohol. [bombshell]
i grew up in the Philippines and spent my first 28 years there. Philippines has a train system and is found in the metro manila area. metro manila is so jammed with traffic especially during the busy hours. to get earlier to your destination, the best way of transportation is the train system. although there are times when the train is full of people. but commuters don't care at all for as long as they can't get there as soon as possible. here in sweden, we do have our own train system which connects one town to another. really helpful to those who aren't comfortable in sitting for hours in a car or in a bus. [maryannemax]
We have a train system here in the UK but it is awful. Often late and very expensive. Same can be said about our bus services too. No wonder there are so many cars in the UK, with such a disapointing public transport service. [Izzi27]
ya in india there is train system but its worst..when i went to singapore i went by train it was like heaven...chanceless...such a maintenance [DavidNag]
Hmm... we have the Metro Railway Transit which practically good for only short distances like going to work. The other transit which is LRT were just the same. When it comes to long distances travel like going to another city or provinces bus is the best source of transpo to use. [lossforredwords]
we sorta have a train system only it is underground and it is called a metro here where i live which is montreal it goes all over the place and it is pretty good but alot of the time they can be really dirty you try and avoid touching anything on a metro so that you dont get sick you just sort of keep to yourself and avoide touching anything. [wadeys]
Yes we do have them we call it LRT and MRT. Long ago, train was used to transfer locals to another province now its more on air and water travel. LRT and MRT connects inter city stations only and covers only the metropolis [druids]
i am living in turkey and to say the truth we have train system almost everywhere in turkey however, the train system in turkey is little bit old , its like 70 years old nowadays and its never maintained well, nowadays government is doing some maintainance to put railroads up in shape however seems like reliability to railroad system has broken because there has been lots of railroad crashes because of not maintaining it however if government would make a good job there railroads might become popular again in turkey because we have beautiful sceneries here and travelling with railroad is really enjoyable in these sceneries happy [skenthal]
In the US, we have AMTRAK. I would says it covers most of the country. When I was a kid, my grandparents took my brother and I on a long train ride across the country and we were on the train for 3 straight days. I remember having a really good time. We thought it was really neat. I don't think a lot of people actually take the train that much here. Most people seem to fly. We took the train because my grandmother was afraid to fly. I've also taken train trips with school and on my own to visit friends, but haven't done so in years. The scenery is beautiful when you take the train, but flying is so much quicker. Maybe I'll have to think about a train trip one of these days. Buses are also used here, but I wouldn't want to do that - it just seems to uncomfortable. [reg415]
Yes we do here in New Zealand, the government has just brought back the rail after a good few years of not owning it. I worked in the railways as a young woman and have always loved the trains, but I don't get to use them these days although we have a great service between West Coast and Christchurch which is a scenic route for tourists and goes through a long tunnel. [kiwikidz]
We have the MRT and LRT lines here in the Philippines. [angelyka]
My country has a train system... but i wouldn't recommend it... because it is very old... and the trains should no longer be running... but there is now a move from the government to revive the train system... but the problem is clearing the old tracks from squatters that already settled there... it will take years to do that... but i am eagerly waiting for it to happen... since travelling from my province to the capital city would be very fast... [aseretdd]
The train system in China is very developable.It is interesting to travel by train in China,you can see a lot of scene aroud the railway! [sunny69316]