Europe and the Making of Modernity

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Effects of railroad train transport on European peasants, rural elites, workers and the middle classes

Railroad transport systems commenced in the mid 1500s. However, the system never used steam powered engines until mid 1700’s. Previously, men and animals such as horses and bulls were used to pull loaded wagons along wooden tracks. Later, steam powered engines were developed, which revolutionized transportation in European countries.

As at 1800s in Wales, Trevithick Richard fruitfully constructed the steam-driven engine. Railroads made great impact in the industrial revolution of Europe. Within 1830-1860, rails had been developed in major markets in Europe. By the year 1903, the Russians had pushed the Trans-Siberian railroad to the Pacific Ocean (Winks and Joan 2). They helped ease transport of both goods and people across the continent.

Goods reached the market on time. They were also used to transport workers to farms over long distances. It also became the mode of transport for the elite and middle class owners of land and properties as they inspected and supervised over their properties. This brought the countries in the continent closer.

Within the cities, urban rail lines and trolleys were developed and were widely used at the end of that century (Winks and Joan 12). This had a powerful influence on housing and building patterns. Businesses set up also took on a certain dimension in regard to the available railroads.

This allowed for wide distribution of workers and labor became relatively accessible and cheap. Generally, the subways were established in London as at 1860’s. Consequently, this was followed by the erection of a similar Budapest in1896 and in Paris by 1900s. This is a critical provision in the context of ancient transportation systems.

The rapid development in the transport sector with the improved technology initiated a revolution in the communication sector. This improved postal agreements among countries in Europe. Further, it marked a milestone in efficient message delivery and improved communication as a whole.

Communication became cheap and fast. In 1870, railroads were the major means of transportation in both Europe and America. Railroads spurred growth. Manufacturers made huge profits as their products reached the intended markets on time. Thus, industries mushroomed in most countries in Europe thereby increasing the demand for labor.

As a result, “many workers were employed by the rich elite who were industrial and property owners” (Winks and Joan 25). They also played a major role in agriculture promotion in Europe especially in Britain. The fishing industry also flourished in such period due to improved and efficient means of transport. Perishable goods got the market fast and earned returns for the rural elites.

This money was channeled at improving efficiency in the farms. This expansion induced the elite to see the need of employing more peasants to the farms. This improved their living standards and those of their families. This led to rapid population growth in most parts of Europe as food was cheaply available and even the peasants who were majorly landless were able to feed their families.

The availability of railroad transport also enabled a huge population of workers to search for better work opportunities in far distant places because the mode of transport was quick and cheap and so many places which were initially considered very far and hidden were now easily accessible by railroads.

This exhibits how the railroad trains affected transportation among the European peasants, rural elites, workers and the middle classes. This is a vital provision in the context of prehistoric transportation systems. It is important to agree that the aspects and revolutions in the European transportations systems were critical and significant in the prehistoric times.

The advancement in the development of railroads also improved the working conditions in the mines. Initially, the working conditions were so dangerous and at times took lives of many mine workers. For example, all the heavy loads from the mines were carried by hand to the surface. But after the introduction of railroad, a system of moving coal horizontally in a basket was developed.

This improved the working conditions of majority of mine workers and many lives were saved in the process. This enhanced the production of coal progressively from 2.5-15 million tons by 1829. This resulted in high returns for landowners and the elite investors who were owners of the mines.

The methods of employing railroads made it possible to harvest such large amounts of coal from the mines and this led to increased investment in the mines which spurred the industrial growth in Europe.

A huge number of peasants also shifted from the subsistence farming which was less rewarding to cash crop farming and in this case, some improved their social status as they moved from outright poverty to a level somewhat closer to the middle class (Winks and Joan 35).

Over the years, Europe has been striving to modernize its transport systems. This saw authorities in the nation embark on high powered deliberations with an aim of streamlining operations in the sector. The ancient leaders developed viable policies to yield fruits in the transportation sector significant for development.

The initiatives facilitated the adoption of conventional transportation techniques, booking systems and maintenance approaches in the railroad systems. Indeed, key stakeholders in the railroad sector credited the initiatives for the growth in the industry. The initiatives have made it possible for railroad users to operate efficiently. This is a key reason why the advent of apps technology in the sector is critical.

Its role is to mitigate the transportation gap between railroad systems and modern transportation systems to attain better services without straining. Evidently, lack of proper operating guidelines of railroad services threatened to impede success in the sector.

However, the current initiatives seek to turn around the sectors operating guidelines. This will spur social and economic integration that is essential for development. This demonstrates how the railroad trains affected transportation among the European peasants, rural elites, workers and the middle classes.

Indeed, there was inadequate holistic adoption of modern techniques of operations in the management of transportation services. This had been compromising quality and timely service delivery in the transportation sector. Poor adoption or integration of viable transportation systems had been impeding movement processes and identification of quality service providers.

It has also been limiting provision of real time services since it compromises communication between stakeholders. This is evident since inferior transportation systems limit coordination on key aspects that appertains to departure/arrival time leading to wastage of time (Winks and Joan 1).

Therefore, the report seeks to revolutionize operations in ailing sector by equipping stakeholders with credible information on essential application systems that they should install in the transport sector. This indicates how the railroad trains affected transportation among the European peasants, rural elites, workers and the middle classes.

Works Cited

Winks, Robin and Joan Neuberger. Europe and the Making of Modernity : 1815-1914. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. Print.

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Europe and the Making of Modernity

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