it is qa summary about developnet and advantages of railway]

The oldest form of railway, credited to Periander of Greece around 2,500 years ago, was

an invention whereby carriages were pulled by slaves along grooves in limestone which

provided the tracks. In the thirteenth century, railways started appearing in Europe;

carriages

then ran on wooden rails and were hauled by hempen ropes attached to men or animals.

Through time, trains which ran on narrow wooden tracks became invaluable in mining, for

the transportation of coal and other minerals to their final destination. In Britain, for

example,

this type of transport was used to move coal from mines to canals for further distribution.

The

use of railways increased when iron was placed on top of the wooden rails, which increased

their lifespan. In their early stages, railways were limited in that trips could be made only by

following the straight lines of inflexible track. But the invention of moveable points in the

track

mechanical devices fitted into the tracks which enable the train to be guided from one track

to

another permitted a greater variety of journeys.

2. In the early days of railways many widths, or gauges, of track were used, which meant that

travelling long distances was not possible without several train changes; for example, in the

1850s, the relatively short trip from Philadelphia to Charleston in the USA involved eight

gauges and seven changes. The introduction of an international standard gauge was a major

development and was soon used by more than half of the worlds railways; within twenty

years,

Britain had more than 7,000 miles of track, a stunning technological achievement.

3. Rail transport blossomed further with the invention of the steam engine which was driven

by steam produced by burning coal and wood because these engines could pull several

carriages behind them. This resulted in the construction of mainline railways, and the

transportation of goods became cheaper than via other methods. However, steam trains

required large pools of labour to clean, load and maintain them, and became increasingly

costly. By the middle of the twentieth century, steam trains were being replaced by diesel

trains, popular because of their substantially lower operating and maintenance costs. A

development in modern times has been the electric train, powered by overhead wires, an

attraction of which is its relatively cheap running costs. Everyone loves the puffing sound of

an old-style steam train and, in countries where they are no longer in use, many older

people

remember them with great nostalgia. However, electric trains are less noisy and create

fewer

pollutants, which is very much in their favour and has contributed to their increased use.

4. Nowadays, trains continue to be a popular form of transport. Although a plane from one

part

of a country to another may be quicker, train stations, unlike airports, tend to be

conveniently

situated near town or city centres. There are no tedious security checks in train stations, as

in

airports, and so precious time is saved and passengers do not become flustered and

stressed.

Most airlines operate a baggage allowance policy, thereby limiting what passengers are

permitted to take on their journey. This is not the case with train travel. Moreover,

passengers

take their luggage on board the train with them, where they can keep an eye on it, knowing

they will not lose it in transit or have to spend half an hour or more waiting for it to be

unloaded

from the train when they reach their destination.

5. Innovations in modern trains for example the bullet train in Japan, or the Eurostar linking

Britain to Europe mean that train travel can be astonishingly fast; in fact, Frances high

speed train has recorded speeds of 357 miles per hour. Many modern trains, unlike planes,

offer flexibility in seating arrangements, with single or double seats available, or groups of

four seats for families, making the journey an enjoyable and relaxing experience. Passengers

sense of well-being is further enhanced by the possibility of moving around the train,

perhaps

to have coffee or a meal in a restaurant carriage on a long journey. Many train journeys can

be made overnight, which frees up time for business people who might otherwise have to

pay

for a hotel if they travel the day before to attend a meeting, or get up very early in the

morning

of the meeting to catch a flight. The provision of electrical power points on trains for

charging

phones or laptops can turn them into mobile offices, a further benefit for business people.

Section B

Read Text Bin the insert and answer Question 3

Question 3

(a) Summarize the development and benefits of railways and advantages of train travel nowadays

according to Text B.

You must use continuous writing (not note form).

Use your own words where appropriate.

Avoid copying long sections of the text.

Your summary should be 150180 words.

Up to 10 marks are available for the content of your answer and up to 10 marks for the quality of

your writing.

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