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In rail transport, a train is a vehicle or (more frequently) a string of vehicles capable of being moved along a continuous line of rails or other guideway for the purpose of conveying freight or passengers between points on a predetermined route. The train may be hauled or propelled by one or more vehicles designed exclusively for that purpose (locomotives) or may be driven by a number of motors incorporated in all or several of the vehicles (multiple units).

As of 2018^[update], there are approximately 1,052,000 kilometres (654,000 mi) of railway track in use worldwide. (World Bank (via Archive.org))

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Selected article of the week

Cambridge railway station is the principal station serving the city of Cambridge in the east of England. It stands at the end of Station Road, off Hills Road, 1 mile (1.6 km) south-east of the city centre. It is the northern terminus of the West Anglia Main Line, 55 miles 52 chains (89.6 km) down the line from London Liverpool Street, the southern terminus. The station is managed by Greater Anglia. It is one of two railway stations in the city (the other being Cambridge North, approximately 2.5 miles (4.0 km) away). Cambridge is noted for having the third-longest platform on the network in England. Cambridge is also the terminus of three secondary routes: the Fen line to King's Lynn, the Breckland line to Norwich and the Ipswich–Ely line to Ipswich. It is the thirteenth busiest station in the UK outside London.

Recently selected: California Western Railroad - Caledonian Sleeper - Pullman porter

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Selected image of the week

CEMEX 415, still lettered for previous owner South West Portland Cement, pulls a train from the mine southeast of Victorville, California, heading for the in-town plant on May 13, 2012. The locomotive is a "kitbashed" EMD SD40 built from the remains of damaged locomotives.

Recently selected: Mauritius Metro Express - freight train with passengers in Senegal - switch control in Malaysia

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Did you know...

...that the opening ceremonies of the Galway to Clifden railway were very sparsely attended because the event date was a strict church holiday and was reserved for attending church services?
...that following heavy damage to the Galveston Island Trolley track and cars from Hurricane Ike in 2008, substitute service with replica buses was operated until service resumed in October 2021?
...that although the former Santa Fe Railway's Galesburg station was demolished after regular passenger service to the station ended in 1996, the site is still used if derailments cause trains to use the Chillicothe Subdivision instead of the Mendota Subdivision?
...that the Fuzhou–Xiamen railway, which opened in 2010, was so heavily used that it reached capacity in 2015, spurring construction on the parallel Fuzhou–Xiamen high-speed railway for CRH passenger train services?

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Selected anniversaries

October 25

Pioneer circa 1898

1848 – The first westbound train from Chicago, Illinois, pulled by the locomotive Pioneer (pictured), departs on the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad (the oldest predecessor of Chicago and North Western Railway).
1854 – The Carillon and Grenville Railway, in Canada, opens.
1882 – The Seney Syndicate sells the Nickel Plate Road to William H. Vanderbilt, who also controlled the New York Central system, for $7.2 million.
1904 – The first 200-kilometre (120 mi) section of the Berlin–Baghdad railway opens.

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Train News

April 30, 2026 – American railroad companies Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern amend their plan for a merger. The plan involves connecting existing networks as well as adding new routes. (Railway-News)
April 30, 2026 – German company Siemens Mobility signs a 200-train contract with Swiss Federal Railways. The contract, which was awarded in November 2025, was until recently contested by Siemens’ competitor Stadler. (Railway Gazette)
April 26, 2026 – 2026 Bekasi train crash – The train Argo Bromo Anggrek collides with a Commuterline train near Jakarta, Indonesia. The crash left 16 people dead, all from the rear car of the Commuterline, and an additional 91 people injured. This happened after a separate train collided with a taxi earlier that day. (BBC, Reuters )

April 26, 2026 – In Mexico, tracks are opened for Tren Felipe Ángeles, a rail link that connects Felipe Ángeles International Airport with Mexico City. (Railway Gazette)

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General images

The following are images from various train-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A preserved armored train (from Train)
Image 2TGV Lacroix first class interior (from Train)
Image 3A gas turbine locomotive operated by the Union Pacific Railroad (from Train)
Image 4A prototype of a Ganz AC electric locomotive in Valtellina, Italy, 1901 (from Locomotive)
Image 5US-style railroad truck (bogie) with journal bearings (from Train)
Image 6Baltimore & Ohio electric engine, 1895 (from Locomotive)
Image 7A Tokyo Monorail train (from Train)
Image 8The EMD FT set the stage for diesel locomotives to take over from steam. (from Train)
Image 9Trains carrying hazardous materials display information identifying their cargo and hazards. This tank car carrying chlorine displays, among other markings, a U.S. DOT placard showing a UN number that identifies the hazardous substance. (from Train)
Image 10Soviet RT-23 Molodets ICBM launch train, in the St Petersburg museum (from Railroad car)
Image 11Schedule of train departure times in Indonesia stations (from Train)
Image 12Southern Railway (UK) 20002 was equipped with both a pantograph and contact shoes. (from Locomotive)
Image 13A Union Pacific freight train; high clearances enable double-stacked containers to be carried in well cars. (from Train)
Image 14An Indian locomotive class WDM-3A diesel locomotive in India (from Locomotive)
Image 15The Union Pacific Big Boy locomotives represented the pinnacle of steam locomotive technology and power. (from Train)
Image 16A wooden toy train set from Swedish manufacturer Brio (from Train)
Image 17Yard for Amtrak equipment, located next to the Los Angeles River. The two tracks on the left are the mainline. (from Rail yard)
Image 18The first useful diesel locomotive (a diesel–electric) for long distances, the SŽD Eel2, 1924 in Kyiv (from Locomotive)
Image 19Typical American extended vision caboose (from Railroad car)
Image 20A Victorian Railways R class steam locomotive in Australia (from Locomotive)
Image 21Restored clerestory cars on display at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin (from Railroad car)
Image 22This GO Transit Bombardier BiLevel cab car includes a horn (top), a bell (top right), headlights (above the door), classification lights (red lights on side), and ditch lights (white lights on side). (from Train)
Image 23This map of Cedar Hill Yard in Connecticut shows a variety of different facilities, including receiving yards, departure yards, classification yards, and a repair yard. (from Rail yard)
Image 24The Japanese 0 Series Shinkansen pioneered high speed rail service (from Train)
Image 25Most derailments, such as this one in Switzerland, are minor and do not cause injuries or damage. (from Train)
Image 26Armored train Hurban located in Zvolen, Slovakia (from Railroad car)
Image 27Garratt locomotives in Zimbabwe (from Train)
Image 28A narrow gauge train in Austria (from Train)
Image 29A narrow-gauge battery–electric locomotive used for mining (from Locomotive)
Image 30Arrival of the Normandy Train, Gare Saint-Lazare, by Claude Monet, 1877, Art Institute of Chicago (from Train)
Image 31British Rail Mark 3 coach, an all-steel car from the 1970s (from Railroad car)
Image 32RegioCitadis light rail train in Zoetermeer (the Netherlands). (from Train)
Image 33Bombardier ALP-45DP, at the Innotrans convention in Berlin (from Locomotive)
Image 34A large Amtrak and Metra coach yard just south of Chicago Union Station. About 25 percent of all rail traffic in the United States travels through the Chicago area. (from Rail yard)
Image 35The 1887 Daimler draisine (from Locomotive)
Image 36A British Rail Class 150 in the United Kingdom (from Railroad car)
Image 37Werner von Siemens experimental DC electric train, 1879 (from Locomotive)
Image 38The ESS 3200 electric locomotive was introduced in 1925 in the Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia. (from Locomotive)
Image 39The "hump" of a hump yard. Railcars travel past retarders, which control their speed, and are directed onto tracks to be assembled into new trains. The control tower operates the retarders. (from Rail yard)
Image 40Electric train on Djursholmsbanan in Stockholm in the 1890s. (from Train)
Image 41A London Underground battery–electric locomotive used for hauling engineers' trains, at West Ham station (from Locomotive)
Image 42A China Railways HXD1D electric locomotive in China (from Locomotive)
Image 43A Metropolitan line S8 Stock at Amersham in London (from Railroad car)
Image 44A coach yard in Shanghai, China (from Rail yard)
Image 45The New Orleans Streetcar System is the oldest in the world. (from Train)
Image 46Inside a modern-day car from Finland (from Railroad car)
Image 47An interior of a Circle line S7 Stock in London (from Railroad car)
Image 48A number of maintenance vehicles at work on Metro-North Railroad (from Train)
Image 49China operates an extensive high speed rail network. (from Train)
Image 50Workington stabling point in 1981, with locomotives from Classes 25, 40 and 47 parked between duties. (from Rail yard)