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Why Are American Freight Trains THREE MILES LONG?!

Finnish Girl Reacts

88,578 views

American freight trains can look almost unreal from a European perspective—and once I learned why they're so different, the comparison made a lot more sense.

In this reaction, I'm learning why American freight trains can be so much larger than the ones we're used to seeing in Europe, from massive double-stack container trains to the tunnels, bridges and infrastructure choices that helped the two rail systems evolve in completely different directions.

I genuinely wasn't expecting to come away thinking the American trains looked prettier too. 😭 The sheer size of those double-stack trains is something else.

What surprised me most was how decisions made decades—or even more than a century—ago can still determine what a railway is physically capable of carrying today.

If you know American freight rail firsthand, I'd love to hear what these trains are actually like to see in person.

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20 Comments

@Bob_88SC 1 month ago

As a guy who has waited for long freight trains to pass in Kansas, I can vouch for the truth of that statement. When you count five locomotives at the head, you know you’re in for a wait. On my route to work there was a crossing right next to a siding. It was such a sinking feeling when the train finally passed by the crossing gates didn’t go up. You’d hear another locomotive horn sound and then you’d see it, just getting underway and accelerating very slowly. 😱

@jonathanjenkins4216 1 month ago

I work for Union Pacific Railroad and i can confirm that most of the trains we run are 3 miles long

@GymbalLock 1 month ago

7:00 the movie is The Polar Express. On the way to the North Pole, it travels through the Uncanny Valley.

@GymbalLock 1 month ago

1:12 what happened was AI slop video. The AI script said "cars rolling past" so the AI video editor put an image of cars on a city street instead of railroad freight cars. Then a glitch in the script gave the AI voice "ano...ooother"

@BouncingSphinx 1 month ago (edited)

5:30 a lot of the reason the tunnels were made bigger to begin with was that a lot of the tunnels were made after trains were already larger than those used in much of Europe at the time. Many European train tunnels were made with early trains in mind, and then trains after had to continue to fit the tunnels that already existed.

Also, as stated later in the video, American railroads did go through the trouble of enlarging tunnels and such in order to fit the double stack trains.

@richinoregon 1 month ago

Australia holds the world record for longest freight train (4.5+mi). What makes it possible is it the railroad is in the dessert and there are no roads that cross it.

@henryford2736 1 month ago

The trains are so long and heavy they have to put locomotives in the middle and the end to prevent the train to break up.

@aerialcat1 1 month ago

Sitting at a crossing just east of Tucson waiting on a freight train; five locomotives in front, one in the middle and another at the rear… a half hour later, fin’g finally!

@IndustrialParrot2816 1 month ago (edited)

Canada and Mexico use the same types of Freight Trains as the US since there is lots of crossborder Freight Rail and some Railroads run in multiple Countries like CPKC which runs as far south as Mexico City but also all over Canada, however 4 Countries outside North America use Doublestack Railcars: Australia, India, China, and Russia but only on specific lines

@MotCru18 1 month ago

I see trains with 300 cars daily. I counted one a few weeks ago that had 335 cars

@williamhannam3870 1 month ago (edited)

My father was a railroad machinist (for Penn Central and then Conrail), so I've always had a fondness for trains.

@Starpopper800 1 month ago

I went skiing in Pennsylvania once and stayed overnight at the foot of the mountain in a rail yard where each car segment of the train was divided into two ‘hotel’ rooms with kitchenettes. Very cool!

@kentuckyace1068 1 month ago

In America, we made a steam locomotive so powerful the entire first armored division, tanks and all, was able to be loaded up and pulled by it in one trip

@generalsquirrel9548 1 month ago

20:37 we also use river barges

@Phx_Phreak 1 month ago

One of the signs you're a kid - long trains are cool to watch going by because you can count the cars.

One of the signs you're an adult - long trains suck because I have places to be.

@JoeCensored 1 month ago

I live in a city with frequent trains in California. I'm always like "oh s%+t" when the train signal activates. It's always like 10+ minutes.

@generalsquirrel9548 1 month ago

10:06 high speed rail is amazing, i highly recommend you to check it out when your on the european continent. We even constructed one under the sea (to britain, it has a regular line next to it)

@rebeccaclementz3756 1 month ago

Amtrak has an auto train that travels the Virginia to Florida route. Part of why they can't do that in New England is that the auto train cars are extra tall and the New England tunnels are not.

@BAYBAY_316 1 month ago

We have a steam engine train built in 1939 on display in my tiny town for anyone to play on. No fence. Just there. It's pretty neat

@91GT347 1 month ago

The Illinois Central Gulf used to be the border of my back yard. Hauling coal, gravel, farm machinery, cars, fertilizer, everything you could imagine.