Many countries are in the process of replacing diesel locomotives with electric locomotives, mainly due to environmental concerns, as in Switzerland, which has completely electrified its network. During the 1960s, electrified high-speed railway systems were introduced in Japan and later in some other countries. Starting during the 1940s, the non-electrified railways in most countries had their steam locomotives replaced by diesel locomotives, with the process being almost complete by the 2000s. In the 1880s, electrified trains were introduced, leading to the electrification of tramways and rapid transit systems. The world's first underground railway, the Metropolitan Railway (part of the London Underground), opened in 1863. The invention and development of the railway in the United Kingdom was one of the most important technological inventions of the 19th century. The use of railway timetables led to standard railway time replacing local mean time.

The change from canals to railways allowed for 'national markets' in which prices varied little from city to city. Shipping cost less, and fewer goods were lost, than in water transport. Steam engines brought mainline railways, a key component of the Industrial Revolution. 1 became the first steam locomotive to carry passengers on a public rail line, the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 1825, and the first public inter-city railway line, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, opened in 1830. Modern rail transport began with a British steam locomotive in 1802. Rail transport resumed in mid 16th century in Germany in the form of horse-powered funiculars and wagonways. The oldest known, man/animal-hauled railways date back to the 6th century BC in Corinth, Greece. Railway transport is capable of high levels of passenger and cargo utilisation and energy efficiency, but is often less flexible and more capital-intensive than road transport, when lower traffic levels are considered.

Railways are a safe land transport system when compared to other forms of transport. Most tracks are accompanied by a signalling system.

Power is provided by locomotives which either draw electric power from a railway electrification system or produce their own power, usually by diesel engines or, historically, steam engines. The operation is carried out by a railway company, providing transport between train stations or freight customer facilities. Rolling stock in a rail transport system generally encounters lower frictional resistance than rubber-tyred road vehicles, so passenger and freight cars (carriages and wagons) can be coupled into longer trains.

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