Train Time: Railroads and the Imminent Reshaping of the United States Landscape

by John R. Stilgoe

Unlike many United States industries, railroads are intrinsically linked to American soil and particular regions. Yet few Americans pay attention to rail lines, even though millions of them live in an economy and culture "waiting for the train." In Train Railroads and the Imminent Reshaping of the United States Landscape , John R. Stilgoe picks up where his acclaimed work Metropolitan Corridor left off, carrying his ideas about the spatial consequences of railways up to the present moment. Arguing that the train is returning, "an economic and cultural tsunami about to transform the United States," Stilgoe posits a future for railways as powerful shapers of American life. Divided into sections that focus on particular aspects of the impending impact of railroads on the landscape, Train Time moves seamlessly between historical and contemporary analysis. From his reading of what prompted investors to reorient their thinking about the railroad industry in the late 1970s, to his exploration of creative solutions to transportation problems and land use planning and development in the present, Stilgoe expands our perspective of an industry normally associated with bad news. Urging us that "the magic moment is now," he observes, "Now a train is often only a whistle heard far off on a sleepless night. But romantic or foreboding or empowering, the whistle announces return and change to those who listen." For scholars with an interest in American history in general and railroad and transit history in particular, as well as general readers concerned about the future of transportation in the United States, Train Time is an engaging look at the future of our railroads.

Genres: Transport, Travel, Trains, Nonfiction, History

Hardcover

First published October 10, 2007

About the author

John Stilgoe is an award-winning historian and photographer who is the Robert and Lois Orchard Professor in the History of Landscape at the Visual and Environmental Studies Department of Harvard University, where he has been teaching since 1977. He is also a fellow of the Society of American Historians. He was featured on a Sixty Minutes episode in 2004 entitled "The Eyes Have It."

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Train time Required Reading.

Great book by an eminent scholar of American life and landscape. Prophetic, compelling, it sees the return of railroads as a way to solve the congestion of highways that can only get worse.

[Gary · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting. More of a public policy statement interspersed with rambling historical notes. The notes are fun, and the points made are valid, so it warrants at least the second star, but, well, not what I was expecting.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read for anyone at all interested in transportation, public transit, cities, planning...this book has probably taught me more and given me more to think about than anything I've read all year.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty neat book. Lots of historical context though I'm not sure it will all come back any time soon.