Railway usage: Top 10 nations

The Railway is one of the best modes of transport. As the railway network expands across the world, here's a look at the passenger-per-km of rail transport annually.

1. India
Passenger-km: 925 billion (2010)

India is ranked No.1 among countries with more than 5 billion passenger-km. Indian Railways has 114,500 kilometres of total track and 7,500 stations.

It has the world's fourth largest railway network after United States, Russia and China.

(All figures include passenger rail only, thus including suburban railways, but excluding metros.)

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2. China
Passenger-km: 876.22 billion (2010)

Rail transport is the most commonly used mode of long-distance transportation in China.

Operated by the Ministry of Railways, the rail network covers a total distance of 91,000 km.

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3. European Union
Passenger-km: 386.24 billion (2009)

The European Railway Agency was set up to create an integrated railway area with enhanced safety and interoperability.

The Agency also acts as the system authority for the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) project, which has been set up to create unique signalling standards throughout Europe.

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4. Japan
Passenger-km: 244.24 billion (2009)

Rail transport in Japan is used for high-speed travel between major cities and for commuter transport in metropolitan areas.

Japan has 27,268 km of rail network across the country. Japan pioneered the high-speed bullet train which connects Japan's largest cities at speeds of up to 300km/hr.

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5. Russia
Passenger-km: 153.58 billion (2009)

The Russian Railways operate over 86,000 km of common carrier routes as well as a few hundred kilometers of industrial routes, making it the second largest network in the world.

The Railways also are one of the largest companies in the world employing 950,000 people.

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6. France
Passenger-km: 87.67 billion (2009)

Rail transport in France is mostly operated by SNCF, the French national railway company.

France has the second largest European railway network, with a total of 29,901 kilometers of railway.

However, the railway system is a small portion of total travel, accounting for less than 10 per cent of passenger travel.

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7. Germany
Passenger-km: 78.58 billion (2010)

Germany is known to have one of the most effective railway system in Europe. It has a total rail network of 41,315 km out of which 19,857 km railway network is fully electrified.

Deutsche Bahn is known to be the major train operator in Germany, which operates intercity express long distance journey trains, Eurocity international long distance trains.

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8. United Kingdom
Passenger-km: 53.72 billion (2010)

The United Kingdom has two major rail networks, network in Great Britain, and the Northern Ireland network.

The railway network in Great Britain consists of about 10,000 miles of track and serves around 2,500 stations.

The railway infrastructure is owned and operated by Network Rail.

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9. Ukraine
Passenger-km: 50.24 billion (2010)

Ukraine has one of the most extensive rail networks in Europe, with a total route length of about 22,000 km, employing 420, 000 people.

Ukraine serves as a key transit route between western and central Europe, Russia and other CIS countries.

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10. Italy
Passenger-km: 45.59 billion (2009)

The high-speed rail network in Italy has two lines connecting all the major cities in Italy.

The first line connects Milan to Naples passing through Bologna, Florence and Rome. The second route runs from Turin to Venice via Milan, and is still under construction.