A Great Railroad at Work

For the past ten years, Jürgen Henn has filmed over-height trucks crashing into the 11foot8 train bridge affectionately nicknamed the "Can Opener." In that time, millions have viewed the crashes online. Regional, national, and international news organizations have dined out on the story and the goofy crash reels. But why do motorists continue to crash despite the many warnings, sensors, and signs? And what is it about these crashes that holds our attention? In this piece, we look for the humanity in human error.

Take a breathtaking train a ride through Nothern Quebec and Labrador on Canada’s first First Nations-owned railway. Come for the celebration of the power of independence, the crucial importance of aboriginal owned businesses and stay for the beauty of the northern landscape.

May 27th, 1971 was a rainy day. In the small town Radevormwald, the world seems to be still in order. But on this day, 46 people die in a train crash, amongst them 41 schoolchildren. Since then, Radevormwald has been connected with one of the worst railway catastrophes of Germany. The touching documentary reconstructs the tragedy and shows how much the event still influences the life in the town until today.

A documentary outlining the railroad's roll in expanding the nation.

A Union Pacific production outlining the Big Boy locomotive and the history of the last great steam engine to rule the rails

Production for the Seaboard Railroad company outlining their railroad activities in the 1940s and heading into the 1950s

A production of the association of American Railroads outlining the wonders of America's rail system.

A documentary on the railroads of America produced by the Association of American Railroads

Climb aboard the illustrious Bernina Express for a festive ride through spectacular Alpine landscapes, taking in snow-covered peaks, architectural wonders, and majestic glaciers.

Documentary film about the Slovak Youth Line - a railway line built by the Czechoslovak youth from Hronská Dúbrava to Báňská Štiavnica and Letovice.

A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.

A day in the city of Berlin, which experienced an industrial boom in the 1920s, and still provides an insight into the living and working conditions at that time. Germany had just recovered a little from the worst consequences of the First World War, the great economic crisis was still a few years away and Hitler was not yet an issue at the time.

Spains Worst Rail Disaster

The pilgrimage to Mecca is one of the most important religious journeys for millions of people around the world. But how to get there? This documentary shows us how 12 companies met the immense challenge of running a high-speed train through Saudi Arabia's sandy rocky desert in temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius. A true marvel of engineering and cooperation, and together, overcoming obstacles.

Neil Oliver describes the worst ever railway accident in the UK, which happened a hundred years ago on 22 May 1915, in which three trains collided at Quintinshill near Gretna Green. One of the trains was a troop train taking soldiers to fight in World War I at the Battle of Gallipoli: many of the dead were in this train which caught fire due to escaped gas from the archaic gas lighting in the carriages. The cause of the crash was attributed to a catastrophic signalman's error, but Neil examines whether there were other contributory factors and whether there was a cover-up to prevent investigation of them, making convenient scapegoats of the signalmen.

Built in 1923, the Flying Scotsman was the first steam locomotive to run at 100 miles an hour and to star in its own feature film. This is the untold story of the iconic Flying Scotsman-the very best in the engineering of its time.

Director Agnès Varda and photographer/muralist JR journey through rural France and form an unlikely friendship.

When a business tycoon allows himself to be 'snared' into seeing some films in a railway traffic manager's office, there must be a reason for it. In this case, it's a particularly giant-sized transport problem. But before he's convinced that the railways can help him solve it, there is an atmosphere of battle in the room, and some interesting and unexpected facts are hurled about in the course of the argument. Made to promote the use of railways to transport raw materials and finished products.

For many, a journey on the Trans-Siberian train is a dream adventure. But, for the train’s team of conductors, it's just another job. However, it's far from routine, as it’s full of unexpected surprises and challenges. Learn about their duties, pastimes and unusual situations they come across while en route and find out what it’s really like to literally live at work.

TGV, génie français du rail