Abstract
The railroad, as the first form of transport to utilize nonhuman or animal energy resources, is one of the most revolutionary inventions of all time. While many books and articles have been written about railroads from historical, economic, and societal perspectives, the present analysis offers a more comparative evaluation of their development in the United States and China. Five aspects that are examined include planning, finance, standardization, management, and pricing. This comparison indicates that many factors – from economic and political, to technological, managerial, institutional, military, cultural, environmental, and more – can influence railroad development. It also offers a window on how engineering can function differently in two quite different societies.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
The geomantic omen theory refers to a comprehensive principle of appraisal of environmental considerations in the planning and designing of buildings in ancient China such as topography, physiognomy, view, and climate and ecology.
References
Chandler Jr., Alfred Dupont. 1977. The visible hand: The managerial revolution in American business. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Chandler Jr., Alfred Dupont. 1980. The United States: Seedbed of managerial capitalism. In Managerial hierarchies: Comparative perspectives on the rise of the modern industrial enterprise, ed. Alfred Dupont Chandler Jr. and Herman Daems. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Chuinai, Wang. 1987. Transportation and communication (in Chinese). Beijing: China Translation and Publishing Corporation.
Congbing, Zhu. 2006. Li Hongzhang and Chinese railroads (in Chinese). Beijing: Qunyan Press.
Dobbin, Frank. 1994. Forging industrial policy: The United States, Britain, and France in the railway age. New York: Cambrige University Press.
Kennedy Jr., Robert Dawson. 1991. The statist evolution of rail governance in the United States, 1830–1986. In Governance of the American economy, ed. John L. Campbel, J.Rogers Hollingsworth, and Leon N. Lindberg. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Pusen, Jin. 2005. On some research questions regarding the external debt since the founding of the P.R.China (in Chinese). Journal of Zhejiang University (Humanities and Social Sciences) 35(5): 43–51.
Ruide, Zhang. 1991. Railroads in modern China: Political aspects of railroad administration, 1876–1937 (in Chinese). Taipei: Institute of Modern History/Academia Sinica.
Shixuan, Jin, and Xu Wenshu. 2000. The history of the development of Chinese railroads (in Chinese). Beijing: China Railway Publishing House.
Shunguo, He. 1992. A history of the American frontier (in Chinese). Beijing: Peking University Press.
Stover, John F. 1961. American railroads. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Taylor, George Rogers. 1964. The transportation revolution, 1815–1860. Armonk: M. E. Sharpe.
Xinzhen, Lan. 2009. The distinguished accomplishment of Chinese railroads in 60 years (in Chinese). Beijing Review.
Yonggang, Yang. 1997. The history of Chinese modern railroads (in Chinese). Shanghai: Shanghai Bookstore Publishing House.
Zenglin, Xu, eds. 1999. Fifty years of railroads in New China (in Chinese). Beijing: China Railway Publishing House.
Acknowledgment
The author wishes to acknowledge Carl Mitcham for his assistance in copyediting and proofreading this chapter. “ (Please insert between line 395–396)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wang, N. (2012). The Development of Railroads in the United States and China. In: Christensen, S., Mitcham, C., Li, B., An, Y. (eds) Engineering, Development and Philosophy. Philosophy of Engineering and Technology, vol 11. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5282-5_20
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5282-5_20
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-5281-8
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-5282-5
eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)