#also lol see why parts of the Virginian Norfolk and Western and that Great Northern tunnel electrified and realize

[catenary-chad]

steam engines REALLY fail as a social metaphor when you actually see the details of why they were banned from tunnels and New York City. They were genuinely noxious and dangerous especially when steep grades and prolonged slow speeds were involved and people would just get left in horrible smoke clouds and nearly asphyxiate and temps got unbearable. There is this whole passage just going on and on about how awful it was in Great Northern’s Cascades tunnel in the steam era to make them electrify it

(Malicious use of this and characters passing out in long tunnels is a thing in my sacriligious rewrite for a reason)

Meanwhile de-electrification was for economic reasons largely related to governments putting railroads in lose-lose situations in the US and it electrification got set back in the UK due to government defunding. Electric trains are about the epitome of something that wins in a legitimate meritocracy but easy gets screwed by institutional forces. I just get so fixated on how frustratingly close but misdirected that aspect of the show is. It had legitimate potential to have a meaningful message train media doesn’t push much and a lot of people don’t know much about but nope gotta bend to dated cliches instead.