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nivlark t1_iyllk4s wrote

Reply to comment by V6Ga in TIL that the southern United States converted all 11,500+ miles of its railroads from broad gauge (5 ft/1.524 m) to nearly-standard gauge (4 ft 9 in/​1.448 m) in just 36 hours, starting on May 31, 1886 by 1859

It's just cheaper. Smaller gauge means smaller earthworks, bridges, tunnels etc.

Mountainous regions of Europe (Switzerland, southern France, the Basque country) also have narrow gauge networks that operate alongside more extensive standard gauge networks.

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