BXBX NOVEL Chapter 129 - The Plan of Laying the Tracks
Chapter 129: The Plan of Laying the Tracks
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Babor looked at the three vigorous young men in front of him. He could not help but sigh. The conflict between the goblins and the dwarves could perhaps be resolved in this generation.
The so-called feud between them and the goblins was not so difficult to reconcile. After all, the territorial issue could still be resolved through a good discussion.
Based on the current situation, Barb even wanted most of the dwarves to move to the vicinity of Rock City to live. As they were closer to Alan, they would be able to learn a lot more.
“Alan, tell me, what do you need us to create this time?”
Shaman straightened his posture and looked at Alan seriously.
Bart nodded and looked at Alan seriously as well.
“Ahem, what I’m going to say next is related to the future development of the entire Hailar Continent. As long as this thing is built, it will bring the various races on the continent closer to each other.”
Alan said in a deep voice. He didn’t hide these words from others. After all, the upgrade of traffic was a big deal.
“What I want to talk about next is the construction of the railway system.”
“Rail transport is a complex system that includes many specialties and various types of work. It is usually composed of railway lines, stations, vehicles, maintenance bases, power supply and transformation, communication signals, command and control centers, and so on.”
“As for the transport organization of rail transport, the realization of its functions, and the guarantee of its safety, the transport organization must implement centralized dispatching, unified command, and the organization of the trains according to the operation diagram. By the time we reach this step, the entire railway network will have basically taken shape.”
Alan paused at this point and looked at the stunned Shaman and Bart. He waited for them to finish digesting the information before asking him a question.
“Question!” Bart raised his hand.
“Bart, please ask.”
“This thing called rail transport could bring various races closer. Does this mean that it will be easier to start a war a well?”
After Bart finished speaking, he carefully glanced at Alan, afraid that his words would make Alan angry.
Alan was also stunned when he heard that. He really hadn’t thought of the railway would trigger a war.
“Alan, finish your plan first. We’ll discuss the rest later.”
Shaman frowned. Seeing that Alan was interrupted, he glared at Bart.
“Let’s start from the beginning. Forget what I said just now. What I want to say is that rail transport can change the traffic situation on the continent.”
“Compared to the current situation where everyone travels by carriage and horse, there is one more way for everyone to travel after the construction of the tracks. Moreover, the construction of the railway starts from Imperial City. Connecting a city is a huge project. It would be great if we can complete a portion of it in a short period of time.”
Alan explained it once again and started from a more recent matter. Shaman and Bart nodded after listening to him, indicating that they understood what he meant.
“Then what do you mean by this rail transport?” Bart asked.
“It has a fixed line, a fixed rail, and public transport facilities such as transport vehicles and service facilities. I call it rail transport.”
Everyone was a little confused by Alan’s explanation. They waited for him to explain with puzzled faces.
“It might not be very clear just by talking. Let’s look at the blueprints.”
After saying that, Alan went upstairs and took out the blueprints that he had obtained from completing mission 6 from the system.
Alan passed the blueprints for the railway track and the handcar to Bart and Shaman respectively. Grandpa Babor watched from the side.
“Alan, is this handcar a means of transportation that is specially used to drive on the tracks?”
After the two looked at the blueprints for a while, Shaman pointed at the handcar blueprint in his hand and asked.
“Yes, there are actually many other types of rail cars that can run on the track, but now we can start with the simplest handcar.”
Alan believed that the follow-up system would definitely give him steam railcar, diesel railcar, and electric railcar, but with the current technology, these railcars were extremely difficult to make.
Hearing that there were other cars, Shaman and Bart’s eyes shone bright. Grandpa Babor, who was not participating in the discussion, still looked at the two of them with eager eyes and tried to snatch the blueprint from Bart.
“So, Alan, you mean you want to build a railway?”
Bart found it hard to believe.
“That’s right. I want to build a railway that can connect two cities so that travel can be more convenient.”
Although Alan sounded confident, he was actually feeling weak in his heart. He did not know when this mission would end.
The construction of the first railway was not an easy task. The technical difficulties were not only in forging, but also in manufacturing. The terrain between the two cities was also an important factor.
“According to the data on the blueprint, if the railway is really built, the travel speed will indeed be much faster.”
Shaman was silent for a long time, calculating whether the travel speed could be shortened as the blueprint said.
Alan nodded confidently and said, “Of course, I’m sure that even the simplest handcar will be more convenient than a carriage or a horse.”
After the general situation was explained, Alan, Bart, and Shaman started to discuss the technical issues.
“The track bears a variety of vertical, horizontal, dead loads and live loads. The loads are transferred from the rail to the roadbed through the railroad ties and the Ballast beds.
“Through mechanical theory, the stress and strain produced by the various components of the track under various loading conditions are analyzed to determine its carrying capacity and stability.
“The track mechanics analyzes the force and deformation of the track structure under the loads of the vehicles, as well as the impact of the track structure defects on the track damage and train operation. It provides a basis for the design of the track structure and the formulation of the track management standards.”
Alan’s theory of mechanics was not very good. After a round of explanation, the two of them finally began to understand.
“In short, the track consists of Ballast beds, railroad ties, steel track, connecting parts, rail anchors, and switches. It is paved with bar-shaped steel. As for the steel, you will have to work hard to try and see if you can forge it, Bart.”
“However, I’ve heard the saying, ‘steel is made after a hundred refinements.’ When you’re making steel, you can try in this direction.”
In order to answer Bart and Shaman’s questions, Alan had already emptied the last bit of ink in his mind. Even wearing the title of pioneer of the Industrial Revolution would no longer be effective.
“Little Alan, have you decided on the direction of laying the first track?”
Grandpa Babor asked at the end.
“Yes, I’ve decided. We’ll lay it in the direction of the Imperial City. However, we still need to discuss with the governor and the others before we officially start the work. We also need to plan the route in advance. There were mountains and rivers, it’ll be better to avoid them before the planning.”
Alan could not help but feel a headache when he thought about the various terrains he might encounter along the way.
“Little Alan, the terrains are easy to deal with. We only need a mage who is proficient in earth magic to solve them. The most important thing is that we can create the railway. That would be the real problem.”
Alan thought about it and realized that it was true. He almost forgot that he was in the world of magic now.. As long as he could solve the problem with magic, it would not be a big problem.