Train services

Many prestigious passenger train services have been bestowed a special name, some of which have become famous in literature and fiction. In past years, railroaders often referred to passenger trains as the “varnish”, alluding to the bygone days of wooden-bodied coaches with their lustrous exterior finishes and fancy livery. “Blocking the varnish” meant that a slow-moving freight train was obstructing a fast passenger train, causing delays.[7]

Some passenger trains, both long-distance and short-distance, may use bi-level (double-decker) cars to carry more passengers per train. Car design and the general safety of passenger trains have dramatically evolved over time, making travel by rail remarkably safe.

Long-distance trains

The VR Class Sm3 Pendolino high-speed train at the Central Railway Station of Tampere, Finland.
Long-distance trains travel between many cities or regions of a country, and sometimes cross several countries. They often have a dining car or restaurant car to allow passengers to have a meal during the course of their journey. Trains travelling overnight may also have sleeping cars. Currently much of travel on these distances of over 500 miles (800 km) is done by air in many countries but in others long-distance travel by rail is a popular or the only cheap way to travel long distances.

High-speed rail

The Shinkansen N700 Series Nozomi travels between Tokyo and Osaka in around two and a half hours.[8]
Main article: High-speed rail
One notable and growing long-distance train category is high-speed rail, which generally runs at speeds above 200 km/h (120 mph) and often operates on dedicated track that is surveyed and prepared to accommodate high speeds. The first successful example of a high-speed passenger rail system was Japan’s Shinkansen, colloquially known as the “bullet train”, which commenced operation in October 1964.