Railroad electrification: past, present, and future Development of the great European systems

For all practical purposes, the first successful application of electric railway traction dates back to 1879, when Dr. Werner von Siemens´ grotesque little locomotive (Fig. 1) hauled passengers around the grounds of an exposition site in Berlin. In 1881, the first public railway service was inaugurated in that city. By 1883, the first part of Magnus Volk´s electric railway at Brighton, England, was completed; and, by 1890, the City & South London Railway began service as England´s first underground system. Because of the generally smaller geographic areas of most European countries, the availability of hydro power (in alpine regions), and the lag in modern highway programs, both Europe and Great Britain have been more dependent on their railway systems??even to the present time?? than the United States. Thus the trend has been toward complete electrification of rail lines in Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. In Great Britain, however, the emphasis is equally upon diesel??electric traction; and this form of tractive power has found some favor on the Continent.