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an English engineer called George
Stephenson invented a steam locomotive.
It pulled coal up a hill. It travelled at six
kilometres an hour. It was the best locomotive
of the time. -
George Stephenson designed the
first train line of passengers in 1830. It
transported people from Manchester to
Liverpool. George and his son, Robert
Stephenson, designed a famous locomotive for the line. It was called Stephenson’s -
Steam locomotives were more comfortable.
They had heating, lighting and toilets.
Some long-distance trains were very luxurious.
They had bedrooms and restaurants. -
The Metropolitan was the first railway built
under the streets of London. People used it a lot. But
the underground railway was smelly and dirty, because of
the smoke from the steam locomotive. -
Werner Von Siemens invented the first electric
train with passengers. -
Electric trains were very
popular. They used electric motors to drive the wheels.
They were cleaner and faster than steam locomotives. -
Trains are longer, faster and more comfortable than in the
past. There are high-speed trains that travel at more than 400 kilometres an hour.
That’s very fast!