The Passenger's Railroad

The Passenger's Railroad. The Union Pacific Line. Passenger travel on the Union Pacific Railroad began in July of 1868, with the first trans-continental service beginning just 10 days after the golden spike was driven on May 10, 1869 at Promontory Point in Utah. The first passenger trains were undeniably crude, they seldom traveled more than 20 miles per hour and meals were eaten quickly in station dining halls. Wooden benches were the standard seating accommodations and wood stoves furnished heat, while air conditioning was unheard of until the 1930's. Slowly improvements began to occur with the introduction of sleeper service (folding wooden benches) in the fall of 1869, new engines and reworked grades and bridges. , In the early years there were occasional wrecks until the intricacies of traffic control were figured out. Improvements and innovations began with continental travel. George Pullman developed his famous "hotel" sleeping cars, the "Pullman Sleeper". Then came dinners (sic), buffet cars and other special railroad cars. , Different engines were made for different grades. Bridges, trestles and tunnels were rebuilt and realigned to ensure safety, and feeder lines were constructed to haul passengers and freight to every corner of the continent. Soon inter-cities and high mountain villages had their own train service. Then came the automobile and the Linclon Highway.