GOV.ALT // Rail Network

The Alteran Republics rail system is little over one hundred years old, but still remains one of the oldest in the region: with the first locomotive-hauled public railway opened in 1888. However, despite the local effort to construct and manage their own railway, it was too much for the fledgling country. The vast majority of the rail network was conceived, developed and built by the Vancouvian Inner Argean Company (IAC) firm.

Most of the railway track is managed by Alteran Rail, which in 2016 had a network of over 7,000 kilometres (4,349 mi) of standard-gauge lines, all of which is electrified. The railway lines range from single to quadruple track or more. In addition, some cities have separate rail-based mass transit systems (including the extensive and historic Nova Lantea Underground, Segovia Express Line and Balwark Metro). There are also several private railways (some of them narrow-gauge), which are primarily short tourist lines – however, they are not managed by Alteran Rail.

In 2014, there were over 900 million journeys on the Alteran rail network, making the Alteran network one of the most used networks in the Argus region. Unlike a number of other countries, rail travel in Altera has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years, with passenger numbers reaching their highest ever level since records began. This has coincided with the privatisation of Alteran National Rail Network, but the effect of this is disputed. The growth is partly attributed to a shift away from private motoring due to growing road congestion and increasing petrol prices, but also to the overall increase in travel due to affluence.

Overview

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Origins

The early railways were a patchwork of local lines operated by small private railway companies. Over the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries, these amalgamated or were bought by competitors until only a handful of larger companies remained. The entire network was brought under government control after the passing of the "Railways and Canals Act" in the late 19th Century, which also saw Altera draft in engineers and expertises from overseas; namely Noronica and Vancouvia. The unification of both railways and canals, as well as the centralisation of the lines and services, became apparent. Railways in Altera were either partially or completely nationalised in the run up to nationalisation. However, the government in Altera has historically resisted calls for the nationalisation of the network – believe that the core Libertarian views of 19th Century Altera would be jeopardised. Whist the lines were completely nationalised in Altera in 1927, a partnership of three big players (Great Northern Rail, Stracton Rail Company and Great Alteran Rail Company) bought up the remainders of the rail lines and became joint-stock public companies and they continued to run the railway system until nationalisation.

The growth in road transport during the 1920s and 1930s greatly reduced revenue for the rail companies, as many domestic and commercial-transport journeys were being made by road in ever more popular cars and trucks. Rail companies accused the government of favouring road haulage through the subsidised construction of roads. During this period, railways were largely used by industries to transport heavy goods, or by the wealthy elite who travelled through the countryside in exquisitely fitted passenger coaches. The railways entered a slow decline owing to a lack of investment and changes in transport policy and lifestyles. A maintenance backlog developed during the nationalisation period continued to sow seeds of resentment in its users, along with the resurgent Libertarian movements. By the 1960s, parts of the national line were sold off, with the network becoming completely de-nationalised by 1974.

Privatisation and Modernisation

Railway operations were privatised during 1963 and 1974. Ownership of the track and infrastructure passed to the newly founded Alteran Rail (now known commonly as AlRail; pronounced all-rail), whilst passenger operations were franchised to individual private sector operators (originally there were 17 franchises) and the goods services sold outright (six companies were set up, but five of these were sold to the same buyer). The government claimed that privatisation would see an improvement in passenger services. Since privatisation, passenger levels have more than doubled, and have surpassed their level in the late 1940s. Train fares cost 2.5% more than under nationalisation in real terms on average. However, while the price of anytime and off-peak tickets has increased, the price of Advance tickets has dramatically decreased in real terms: the average Advance ticket in 1995 cost Ͼ9.14 (in 2014 prices) compared to Ͼ5.17 in 2014.

Subsidies to the rail industry have decreased dramatically from Ͼ5bn in 1980-91 to Ͼ0.6bn in 2013-14 (in 2014 prices) but have more than halved in terms of subsidy per journey from Ͼ5.40 to Ͼ2.40. The Curia have pointed out that the subsidy must remain in order to keep prices reasonable, however libertarians state the opposite, that competition and the free market would keep prices down.

At the end of September 2003, came the first part of a major national overhaul of the rail network. Funded primarily by companies, but backed with government support, several projects were proposed and accepted – with the aim of increasing journey times, increasing capacity whilst remaining affordable and reliable to the consumer. The main projects were; ‘Rayon’ – a high speed cross-national service, ‘Meteor’ - a service linking the Balwark and Albion islands to the mainland via tunnels, upgrades to the ‘Sterling Metro’ airport service lines and ‘CroixRail’ - two new high-capacity lines servicing Nova Lantea Underground and Patrium Metros. Whilst all of the projects had some issues along their construction, only the Rayon and Sterling Metro projects were completed on schedule with minimal disruption, the projects completed and running in 2009 and 2010 respectively.

The construction of the Meteor line has been plagued with delays, primarily with construction of the tunnels. Both tunnels hit numerous technical issues, including the deaths of 12 workmen in June 2007, when one of the tunnels going under the river Lantea collapsed – work resumed in February 2008 after a lengthy investigation. The Lantea tunnel was completed in 2013 and completed its rail fitting and testing in 2015.

Equipment

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Whilst the gauge of the track is identical across the nation, there are several varieties and types of train used to service the many lines. They range from slow, high capacity express trains – to high speed, high cost, trans-national trains. Whilst many of the Metro and Underground trains are considered ‘historical stock’, both networks are currently in the process of changing to modern, efficient designs.

High-Speed Stock

These high-speed trains are only used on the modernised ‘high-speed’ track, which feature wide, gentle turns and an overhead cable specifically catered for the Meteor and Rayon services. On these tracks, only the High-Speed stock can be used, as only small parts of this network has electrified rails. The high-speed stock feature an aerodynamic design and travel in excess of 150mph. Though the carriages are the same length and width as standard stock, the high-speed stock have a lower passenger capacity as standing is prohibited during travel.

Standard Stock

The standard stock is used my most lines across the country, namely for lines that feature multiple stops in towns, villages and cities along its route. Whilst only travelling up to 80mph, they have a high capacity and contain plenty of space for seated and standing passengers. Pre-electrification, the stock was entirely diesel and was notorious for its smell and dirty condition. Following electrification, their reputation has increased with the latest carriages being fitted with public wifi and air-conditioning.

Express Stock

The Express Stock externally is identical to the standard stock, but the interior is altered dramatically. Primarily used for the short journeys to and from airports to major cities, there are few extra thrills in the stock – unlike their standard stock counterparts. Seating arrangements are similar to Underground Stock; having seating facing inwards, rather than the standard fore/aft facing seats in standard stock. Express stock is limited to 50mph, which isn’t an issue for most passengers as journeys tend not to exceed 15 minutes, as they have no stops between the short run between airport and the nearest city.

Underground Stock

Underground stock are similar to the Express Stock, but have short and wider carriages in order to navigate the tighter twists and turns in underground tunnels. Underground stock also feature automated doors that, unlike doors on other types of train, open automatically once arriving at the platform and close 12 seconds prior to departure. Underground stock is limited to 40mph, but most lines have a 30mph limit. This does not affect journeys as the average time between two underground stops is 60 to 180 seconds.

Current Stock

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Name	Origin	Type	Image	Notes
Conway ‘Hussar’	Alteran Republics	High-Speed Stock		'Meteor' service. Standard fore/aft facing seats, air-con, WiFi, toilet facilities and trolley service/ refreshments carriage.
IAC / NAR ‘Cossack’	Vancouvia	High-Speed Stock		'Rayon' service. Standard fore/aft facing seats, air-con, WiFi, toilet facilities and trolley service/ refreshments carriage.
IAC / NAR ‘Lancer’	Vancouvia	Standard Stock		Standard fore/aft facing seats, air-con, WiFi, toilet facilities and trolley service.
Oakoms ‘Cuirassiers’	Alteran Republics	Express Stock		Standard fore/aft facing seats, air-con, WiFi and toilet facilities.
Oakoms ‘Dragoon’	Alteran Republics	Underground Stock		Wall cushions, standing-seats, inward facing seats, air-con and WiFi.

Network Map

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