Chapter 209: The First Railway Project
By mid-September, the former staff of the Roens Railway Company arrived in East Africa. The company's name was changed to the East Africa Railway Company, but otherwise, there were no major changes.
Chief Engineer Noding was hired as a technical advisor for East Africa's railway department.
In October, the East Africa Railway Company studied the terrain data provided by the East African government. Afterward, Engineer Noding and his team were invited to take part in a government meeting about railway construction.
"Everyone," Prince Constantin said, establishing the tone of the meeting, "the decisions made here will shape the fate of East Africa's railways. Once a final choice is set, East Africa's rail system will follow that path indefinitely. So I hope you'll all share your thoughts openly. Based on East Africa's actual conditions, we must choose the railway standard that's best for us. Now we'll have Mr. Noding give us an introduction."
Engineer Noding nodded to the group, then stood up to explain basic railway concepts. Many members of East Africa's government only had an elementary-school education, so it was necessary to explain in simple terms.
"…So these are some key points of railway construction," he said, "but in the end it comes back to deciding on a track gauge. Worldwide, there's no single standard—every country has its own situation. I encourage each of you to share your ideas freely; there's no need to worry if you're not experts."
As Prince Ernst's trusted appointee, Siweite had been told before the meeting to speak first. So he began: "There's no fixed standard for either wide or narrow gauge (the International Railway Association only set 1435 mm as the standard in 1937). In my opinion, we might as well just pick a number in the middle. Let's say 1500 mm."
Once someone had broken the ice, the atmosphere became more active.
Yalman said, "I think we should build it bigger. I've ridden trains before; back in the army, we were packed into tiny cars, really cramped and uncomfortable. I used to think if the train cars were bigger, the experience would be better. So my idea is to go all the way up to two meters—though that's just my personal thought, so don't laugh if I'm mistaken."
A number of officials who had served in the Prussian army agreed with Yalman's idea.
"I feel 1435 mm isn't bad, since many countries use it."
"1435 mm seems awkward—it originally comes from 4 feet 8.5 inches in Britain. The British love that kind of thing, making it complicated, like their pound sterling. We in East Africa use the metric system, so picking a round metric number is better for calculations."
"I don't like 1435 mm either. In overseas situations, Germany is weaker. The real colonizing powers are Britain and France. If we Germans can develop East Africa, then Britain and France can also develop African colonies in the future, and indeed they've occupied regions in North Africa, West Africa, Somalia, and the Cape, putting us in the middle. So from a military standpoint, we might learn from Russia and not align our railway standard with theirs."
"I agree. East Africa doesn't need to worry about linking up with other places. This is Africa, not Russia, connecting Europe and Asia. Our external links are still by sea. On land, there's only a small area near Egypt. They're building the Suez Canal, and that's under British-French rivalry. I doubt they'll let outsiders in."
"Wider gauge has the advantage of bigger capacity and fewer technical constraints, but it also means heavier loads that need stronger power. However, we don't care much about speed. Our main exports are grain and timber, and we don't even produce enough for ourselves, so personally, I support a wide gauge."
"I believe for railways, bigger is better. East Africa is even more spacious than Russia—sparse population and vast land—so taking up more land doesn't matter. In Europe's farmland, that's a concern, but we have endless grasslands and forests, so it's no big deal."
"Generally, it's not a problem, because wide gauge is only somewhat wider," Engineer Noding added. "Aside from curves, you mostly just have two rails in a straight line. If it's wider, you might need longer sleepers and more space, but that's small compared to the total zone of about 10–30 meters on each side that railways often occupy. The main difference is in tunnels and bridges.
"Regarding safety, wide gauge can actually run more steadily with today's technology. But for turning, we rely on the special outer diameter of the wheels to handle the difference. That means the gauge can't be too wide."
Mr. Noding, what exactly does 'can't be too wide' mean?" someone asked.
"My advice is not to exceed three meters, since so far no real railway that wide has been used. In 1835, the British once built over three hundred miles of track at 2140 mm, which ran for a while. I'm not deeply versed in locomotives, but with the growth in technology, I'd guess up to three meters should be safe. And if East Africa ends up using a gauge above two meters, that'd be unique in the world—something we could call 'ultra-wide gauge.' In my personal view, an ultra-wide gauge might have even more potential in the long run. Europe's freight volumes keep rising, and railway development either pursues speed or heavier loads. If we can handle the power and technical issues in the future, it's not impossible. Judging by current progress, I think it's likely."
Hearing this, the new Army Commander Felix said, "I suggest we go with 2500 mm as our East African standard. That's doable from a technical standpoint and fits our needs. Our climate is the opposite of Russia's, but I know Russia also has grasslands and forests. So we're somewhat similar; wide gauge should be fine."
Most people agreed. Russia's geography indeed had similarities with East Africa—lots of forest, grassland, though Russia had permafrost and East Africa had wetlands, but the principle was the same.
After the East African government weighed the pros and cons, and Engineer Noding confirmed it, East Africa ultimately chose a rather unconventional figure: 2500 mm. Originally Ernst leaned more toward 1500 mm, but by the end of this meeting, the arguments had intrigued him. Spending a bit more money was no big deal; labor was the main cost of railway building anyway, and East Africa's inhabitants wouldn't be doing the heavy labor themselves, so they could go bold.
Thus, the first East African railway was formally proposed. Since its endpoint lay at First Town, and it was East Africa's first railway, they simply called it the "First Railway." Future generations would add "East African" in front. The total planned length was around fifty-nine kilometers. The station sites were set slightly outside both First Town and Dar es Salaam, partly for defensive reasons. Also, the locomotive's noise would be loud. Ernst didn't mind, but it wouldn't be good to disturb Prince Constantin's rest.
Since it was an experimental line, Ernst didn't worry much. If it failed, they'd just abandon it. Also, the meeting gave Ernst a sense of urgency. Ultra-wide gauge was a bold idea, but they'd need enough technology to back it up. In Ernst's previous life, standard gauge was mostly a path-dependency issue—Britain started it and spread it worldwide, so even if people wanted to change, the costs of converting everything were too high. Some proposed in the past that the Eurasian Land Bridge use rails above two meters, so you could carry more containers, but it remained a dream.
In this world, railways haven't been around that long. Many countries have barely seen them. East Africa can't match other places in steam technology, and the standard gauge's first-mover advantage is established. If East Africa chooses something else, they'll need breakthroughs in technology.
But Ernst did have one card left: the Berlin Energy & Power Company—currently the leading firm in internal-combustion engines worldwide. Next year, 1870, they're scheduled to release a practical four-stroke internal-combustion engine. Right now, the company has less to do, so Ernst plans to give them more tasks—creating a new department focused on internal-combustion locomotives, automobiles, and other engine applications.
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