Trains use big bridges or deep tunnels to cross the largest rivers. The Victorian engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, invented strong metal bridges to carry the weight of a train. Some bridges are so big that repainting them is a full-time job!
Is the Channel Tunnel longest?
Not quite. The Channel Tunnel is 49.8 kilometres in total. The Seikan, Japan’s tunnel between the main islands of Honshu and Hokkaido, travels an amazing 53.9 kilometres underground.
Where was the first raised city railway?
New York City had a serious traffic problem in the 1880s, and that was before cars! An ‘Elevated Railway’, known as ‘the L’ for short, was built above the streets. It still works today.
Amazing! You can take a train on a boat. Train ferries started operating in the late 1800s between England and France. Passengers stayed in their seats all the way from London to Paris!
Is it true? Box Hill tunnel knows its creator’s birthday.
Yes. Brunel built it at a special angle. Each year, only on his birthday, the sun shines right through the entire 3.2 kilometre tunnel in southern England.
Picture Credit : Google