History of the Mexican Trains Ferrocarriles Research Paper

History of the Mexican Trains Ferrocarriles - Research Paper Example The transportation network has had a major part to play in the economic progression of every nation on the planet. A well constructed and collaborative transportation network is the only guarantee that goods, people and services can be located from one part of the country to another with speed, flexibility and at little cost. Transportation can be seen as having a direct link to economic expansion and sustenance. It is unrealistic to expect that one region or nation has the ability to produce all that it consumes. In a similar manner, it is unrealistic to assume that a region can consume all that it produces. In order to strike the balance between demand and supply of various kinds of goods and service it is essential to have a well planned and integrated transportation network to rely on. Only such a transport network could allow the impeccable coordination required between various sectors of the economy such as agriculture, mining, manufacturing, retailing etc. While the provision of a transport network is highly relevant to the modern economic system, but this was not always the case. Instead, a well integrated transportation network was required by nearly all great nations for keeping up with their military ambitions. Economic priorities remained secondary when the creation of a well integrated transportation network was taken into account during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Given the need to move economic goods as well as military goods, the preferential method of enhancing the transport network was to use railway links. This also coincided with the fact that road based automobiles were neither common nor highly appreciated in the nineteenth century. Instead, the railway networks of the era were highly preferred given the technical expertise in manufacturing and operating railway linkages. Another major factor that contributed to the growth of the railways in the era related to disposable incomes and the cost of early automobiles. Early automobi les were not only expensive to buy but were equally fiscally demanding in terms of operating and maintenance costs. The problem was compounded by the fact that the majority of people did not have the kinds of disposable incomes to buy and use road based vehicles as yet. In this scenario, it made far greater sense to set up railway linkages in order to enhance the overall transport infrastructure rather than concentrating on roads and automobiles. Vehement development of the railway networks continued throughout the nineteenth century and through the early to mid parts of the twentieth century around the world. Contemporary super powers and countries looking for economic development all looked towards large railway networks in order to support and sustain their economic growth. It is from this era that the British railway networks emerged and spanned nearly half the globe ranging from Africa to the Tibet plateau. In a similar manner, the United States was bent upon enlarging the exis ting railway network to connect the East Coast to the West Coast. A number of different strategies were adopted in order to provide impetus for the expansion of the existing railway network. Conditions in Germany and France were similar with Germany attempting to bridge the Middle East and Europe using a railway link