Railways
This entry states the total route length of the railway network and of its component parts by gauge, which is the measure of the distance between the inner sides of the load-bearing rails. The four typical types of gauges are: broad, standard, narrow, and dual. Other gauges are listed in a note. Some 60% of the world's railways use the standard gauge of 1.4 m (4.7 ft). Gauges vary by country and sometimes within countries. The choice of gauge during initial construction was mainly in response to local conditions and the intent of the builder. Narrow-gauge railways were cheaper to build and could negotiate sharper curves, broad-gauge railways gave greater stability and permitted higher speeds. Standard-gauge railways were a compromise between narrow and broad gauges.
Albania
total: 424 km (2017)
2021-All the trains in the country suspendedAlgeria
total: 4,020 km (2019)
Angola
total: 2,761 km (2022)
narrow gauge: 2,638 km (2022) 1.067-m gauge
123 km 0.600-mm gaugeArgentina
total: 17,866 km (2018)
Armenia
total: 686 km (2017)
Australia
total: 36,064 km (2022) 3,448 km electrified
standard gauge: 18,007 km (2022) 1.435 mm
narrow gauge: 11,914 km (2022) 1.067 mm
broad gauge: 2,685 km (2022) 1.600 mmAustria
total: 6,123 km (2022) 3,523 km electrified
Azerbaijan
total: 2,944.3 km (2017)
broad gauge: 2,944.3 km (2017) 1.520-m gauge (approx. 1,767 km electrified)Bangladesh
total: 2,460 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 1,801 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
broad gauge: 659 km (2014) 1.676-m gaugeBelarus
total: 5,528 km (2014)
standard gauge: 25 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
broad gauge: 5,503 km (2014) 1.520-m gauge (874 km electrified)Belgium
total: 3,602 km (2020) 3,160 km electrified
Benin
total: 438 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 438 km (2014) 1.000-m gaugeBolivia
total: 3,960 km (2019)
narrow gauge: 3,960 km (2014) 1.000-m gaugeBosnia and Herzegovina
total: 965 km (2014)
standard gauge: 965 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (565 km electrified)Botswana
total: 888 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 888 km (2014) 1.067-m gaugeBrazil
total: 29,849.9 km (2014)
standard gauge: 194 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 23,341.6 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge (24 km electrified)
broad gauge: 5,822.3 km (2014) 1.600-m gauge (498.3 km electrified)
dual gauge: 492 km (2014) 1.600-1.000-m gaugeBulgaria
total: 4,029 km (2020) 2,871 km electrified
Burkina Faso
total: 622 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 622 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
note: another 660 km of this railway extends into Cote d'IvoireBurma
total: 5,031 km (2008)
narrow gauge: 5,031 km (2008) 1.000-m gaugeCambodia
total: 642 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 642 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
note: under restorationCameroon
total: 987 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 987 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
note: railway connections generally efficient but limited; rail lines connect major cities of Douala, Yaounde, Ngaoundere, and Garoua; passenger and freight service provided by CAMRAILCanada
total: 49,422 km (2021) note: 129 km electrified (2021)
standard gauge: 49,422 km (2021) 1.435-m gaugeChile
total: 7,281.5 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 3,853.5 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
broad gauge: 3,428 km (2014) 1.676-m gauge (1,691 km electrified)China
total: 150,000 km (2021) 1.435-m gauge (100,000 km electrified); 104,0000 traditional, 40,000 high-speed
Christmas Island
total: 18 km (2017)
standard gauge: 18 km (2017) 1.435-m (not in operation)
note: the 18-km Christmas Island Phosphate Company Railway between Flying Fish Cove and South Point was decommissioned in 1987; some tracks and scrap remain in placeColombia
total: 2,141 km (2019)
standard gauge: 150 km (2019) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 1,991 km (2019) 0.914-m gaugeCongo, Democratic Republic of the
total: 4,007 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 3,882 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge (858 km electrified)
125 1.000-mm gaugeCongo, Republic of the
total: 510 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 510 km (2014) 1.067-m gaugeCosta Rica
total: 278 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 278 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge
note: the entire rail network fell into disrepair and out of use at the end of the 20th century; since 2005, certain sections of rail have been rehabilitatedCote d'Ivoire
total: 660 km (2008)
narrow gauge: 660 km (2008) 1.000-m gauge
note: an additional 622 km of this railroad extends into Burkina FasoCroatia
total: 2,617 km (2020) 980 km electrified
Cuba
total: 8,367 km (2017)
standard gauge: 8,195 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge (124 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 172 km (2017) 1.000-m gauge
note: As of 2013, 70 km of standard gauge and 12 km of narrow gauge track were not for public useCzechia
total: 9,548 km (2020) 3,242 km electrified
Denmark
total: 2,682 km (2020) 876 km electrified
Djibouti
total: 97 km (2017) (Djibouti segment of the 756 km Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway)
standard gauge: 97 km (2017) 1.435-m gaugeDominican Republic
total: 496 km (2014)
standard gauge: 354 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 142 km (2014) 0.762-m gaugeEcuador
total: 965 km (2022)
narrow gauge: 965 km (2022) 1.067-m gauge
note: passenger service limited to certain sections of track, mostly for tourist trainsEgypt
total: 5,085 km (2014)
standard gauge: 5,085 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (62 km electrified)El Salvador
total: 12.5 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 12.5 km (2014) 0.914-mm gaugeEritrea
total: 306 km (2018)
narrow gauge: 306 km (2018) 0.950-m gaugeEstonia
total: 1,441 km (2020) 225 km electrified
Eswatini
total: 301 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 301 km (2014) 1.067-m gaugeEthiopia
total: 659 km (2017) (Ethiopian segment of the 756 km Addis Ababa-Djibouti railroad)
standard gauge: 659 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge
note: electric railway with redundant power supplies; under joint control of Djibouti and Ethiopia and managed by a Chinese contractorEuropean Union
total: 200,251 km (2020)
Fiji
total: 597 km (2008)
narrow gauge: 597 km (2008) 0.600-m gauge
note: belongs to the government-owned Fiji Sugar Corporation; used to haul sugarcane during the harvest season, which runs from May to DecemberFinland
total: 5,918 km (2020) 3,349 km electrified
France
total: 27,860 km (2020) 16,660 km electrified
narrow gauge: -5 kmGabon
total: 649 km (2014)
standard gauge: 649 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugeGeorgia
total: 1,363 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 37 km (2014) 0.912-m gauge (37 km electrified)
broad gauge: 1,326 km (2014) 1.520-m gauge (1,251 km electrified)Germany
total: 39,379 km (2020) 20,942 km electrified
15 km 0.900-mm gauge, 24 km 0.750-mm gauge (2015)Ghana
total: 947 km (2022)
narrow gauge: 947 km (2022) 1.067-m gaugeGreece
total: 2,345 km (2020) 731 km electrified
Guatemala
total: 800 km (2018)
narrow gauge: 800 km (2018) 0.914-m gauge
note: despite the existence of a railway network, all rail service was suspended in 2007 and no passenger or freight train currently runs in the country (2018)Guinea
total: 1,086 km (2017)
standard gauge: 279 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 807 km (2017) 1.000-m gaugeHonduras
total: 699 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 164 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge
115 km 1.057-mm gauge
420 km 0.914-mm gaugeHungary
total: 7,687 km (2020) 3,111 km electrified
India
total: 65,554 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 1,604 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge
broad gauge: 63,950 km (2014) (39, 329 km electrified)Indonesia
total: 8,159 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 8,159 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge (565 km electrified)
note: 4,816 km operationalIran
total: 8,483.5 km (2014)
standard gauge: 8,389.5 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (189.5 km electrified)
broad gauge: 94 km (2014) 1.676-m gaugeIraq
total: 2,272 km (2014)
standard gauge: 2,272 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugeIreland
total: 1,688 km (2020) 53 km electrified
Isle of Man
total: 63 km (2008)
narrow gauge: 6 km (2008) 1.076-m gauge (6 km electrified)
57 0.914-mm gauge (29 km electrified) note: primarily summer tourist attractionsIsrael
total: 1,384 km (2019) (2019)
standard gauge: 1,384 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugeItaly
total: 18,475 km (2020) 12,936 km electrified
1289.3 0.950-mm gauge (151.3 km electrified)Japan
total: 27,311 km (2015)
standard gauge: 4,800 km (2015) 1.435-m gauge (4,800 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 124 km (2015) 1.372-m gauge (124 km electrified)
dual gauge: 132 km (2015) 1.435-1.067-m gauge (132 km electrified)
22,207 km 1.067-mm gauge (15,430 km electrified)
48 km 0.762-m gauge (48 km electrified)Jordan
total: 509 km (2020)
narrow gauge: 509 km (2014) 1.050-m gaugeKazakhstan
total: 16,636 km (2020)
broad gauge: 16,636 km (2020) 1.520-m gauge (4,237 km electrified)Kenya
total: 3,819 km (2018)
standard gauge: 485 km (2018) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 3,334 km (2018) 1.000-m gaugeKorea, North
total: 7,435 km (2014)
standard gauge: 7,435 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (5,400 km electrified)
note: figures are approximate; some narrow-gauge railway also existsKorea, South
total: 3,979 km (2016)
standard gauge: 3,979 km (2016) 1.435-m gauge (2,727 km electrified)Kosovo
total: 437 km (2020)
Kyrgyzstan
total: 424 km (2022)
broad gauge: 424 km (2018) 1.520-m gaugeLaos
total: 422 km (2023)
standard gauge: 422 km (2023)Latvia
total: 2,216 km (2020) 257 km electrified
Lebanon
total: 401 km (2017)
standard gauge: 319 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 82 km (2017) 1.050-m gauge
note: rail system is still unusable due to damage sustained from fighting in the 1980s and in 2006Liberia
total: 429 km (2008)
standard gauge: 345 km (2008) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 84 km (2008) 1.067-m gauge
note: most sections of the railways inoperable due to damage sustained during the civil wars from 1980 to 2003, but many are being rebuiltLiechtenstein
total: 9 km (2018)
standard gauge: 9 km (2018) 1.435-m gauge (electrified)
note: belongs to the Austrian Railway System connecting Austria and SwitzerlandLithuania
total: 1,911 km (2020) 152 km electrified
Luxembourg
total: 271 km (2020) 262 km electrified
Madagascar
total: 836 km (2018)
narrow gauge: 836 km (2018) 1.000-m gaugeMalawi
total: 767 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 767 km (2014) 1.067-m gaugeMalaysia
total: 1,851 km (2014)
standard gauge: 59 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (59 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 1,792 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge (339 km electrified)Mali
total: 593 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 593 km (2014) 1.000-m gaugeMauritania
total: 728 km (2014)
standard gauge: 728 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugeMexico
total: 23,389 km (2017)
standard gauge: 23,389 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge (27 km electrified)Moldova
total: 1,171 km (2014)
standard gauge: 14 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
broad gauge: 1,157 km (2014) 1.520-m gaugeMonaco
note: Monaco has a single railway station but does not operate its own train service; the French operator SNCF operates rail services in Monaco
Mongolia
total: 1,815 km (2017)
broad gauge: 1,815 km (2017) 1.520-m gauge
note: national operator Ulaanbaatar Railway is jointly owned by the Mongolian Government and by the Russian State RailwayMontenegro
total: 250 km (2017)
standard gauge: 250 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge (224 km electrified)Morocco
total: 2,067 km (2014)
standard gauge: 2,067 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (1,022 km electrified)Mozambique
total: 4,787 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 4,787 km (2014) 1.067-m gaugeNamibia
total: 2,628 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 2,628 km (2014) 1.067-m gaugeNepal
total: 59 km (2018)
narrow gauge: 59 km (2018) 0.762-m gaugeNetherlands
total: 3,055 km (2020) 2,310 km electrified
New Zealand
total: 4,128 km (2018)
narrow gauge: 4,128 km (2018) 1.067-m gauge (506 km electrified)Nigeria
total: 3,798 km (2014)
standard gauge: 293 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 3,505 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge
note: as of the end of 2018, there were only six operational locomotives in Nigeria primarily used for passenger service; the majority of the rail lines are in a severe state of disrepair and need to be replacedNorth Macedonia
total: 699 km (2020) 313 km electrified
Norway
total: 3,848 km (2020) 2,482 km electrified
Pakistan
total: 11,881 km (2021)
narrow gauge: 389 km (2021) 1.000-m gauge
broad gauge: 11,492 km (2021) 1.676-m gauge (286 km electrified)Panama
total: 77 km (2014)
standard gauge: 77 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugeParaguay
total: 30 km (2014)
standard gauge: 30 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugePeru
total: 1,854.4 km (2017)
standard gauge: 1,730.4 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (34 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 124 km (2014) 0.914-m gaugePhilippines
total: 77 km (2017)
standard gauge: 49 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 28 km (2017) 1.067-m gaugePoland
total: 19,461 km (2020) 11,946 km electrified
Portugal
total: 2,526 km (2020) 1,696 km electrified
Romania
total: 10,628 km (2020) 4,030 km electrified
Russia
total: 85,494 km (2019)
narrow gauge: 957 kmSaint Kitts and Nevis
total: 50 km (2008)
narrow gauge: 50 km (2008) 0.762-m gauge on Saint Kitts for touristsSaudi Arabia
total: 5,410 km (2016)
standard gauge: 5,410 km (2016) 1.435-m gauge (with branch lines and sidings)Senegal
total: 906 km (2017) (713 km operational in 2017)
narrow gauge: 906 km (2017) 1.000-m gaugeSerbia
total: 3,333 km (2020) 1,274 km electrified
Slovakia
total: 3,627 km (2020) 1,585 km electrified
Slovenia
total: 1,207 km (2020) 609 km electrified
South Africa
total: 20,986 km (2014)
standard gauge: 80 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (80 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 19,756 km (2014) 1.065-m gauge (8,271 km electrified)
other: (2014) 1,150 km (passenger rail, gauge unspecified, 1,115.5 km electrified)South Sudan
total: 248 km (2018)
note: a narrow gauge, single-track railroad between Babonosa (Sudan) and Wau, the only existing rail system, was repaired in 2010 with $250 million in UN funds, but is not currently operationalSpain
total: 15,489 km (2020) 9,953 km electrified
Sri Lanka
total: 1,562 km (2016)
broad gauge: 1,562 km (2016) 1.676-m gaugeSudan
total: 7,251 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 5,851 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge
1,400 km 0.600-m gauge for cotton plantationsSweden
total: 10,910 km (2020) 8,184 km electrified
narrow gauge: 65 kmSwitzerland
total: 5,296 km (2020) 5,296 km electrified; Switzerland remains the only country with a fully electrified network
Syria
total: 2,052 km (2014)
standard gauge: 1,801 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 251 km (2014) 1.050-m gaugeTaiwan
total: 1,613.1 km (2018)
standard gauge: 345 km (2018) 1.435-m gauge (345 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 1,118.1 km (2018) 1.067-m gauge (793.9 km electrified)
150 0.762-m gauge note: the 0.762-gauge track belongs to three entities: the Forestry Bureau, Taiwan Cement, and TaiPowerTajikistan
total: 680 km (2014)
broad gauge: 680 km (2014) 1.520-m gaugeTanzania
total: 4,097 km (2022)
standard gauge: 421 km (2022)
narrow gauge: 969 km (2022) 1.067 m gauge
broad gauge: 2,707 km (2022) 1.000 m guageThailand
total: 4,127 km (2017)
standard gauge: 84 km (2017) 1.435-m gauge (84 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 4,043 km (2017) 1.000-m gaugeTogo
total: 568 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 568 km (2014) 1.000-m gaugeTunisia
total: 2,173 km (2014) (1,991 in use)
standard gauge: 471 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 1,694 km (2014) 1.000-m gauge (65 km electrified)
dual gauge: 8 km (2014) 1.435-1.000-m gaugeTurkey (Turkiye)
total: 11,497 km (2018)
standard gauge: 11,497 km (2018) 1.435-m gauge (1.435 km high speed train)Turkmenistan
total: 5,113 km (2017)
broad gauge: 5,113 km (2017) 1.520-m gaugeUganda
total: 1,244 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 1,244 km (2014) 1.000-m gaugeUkraine
total: 21,733 km (2014)
standard gauge: 49 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (49 km electrified)
broad gauge: 21,684 km (2014) 1.524-m gauge (9,250 km electrified)United Kingdom
total: 16,390 km (2020) 6,167 km electrified
United States
total: 293,564.2 km (2014)
standard gauge: 293,564.2 km (2014) 1.435-m gaugeUruguay
total: 1,673 km (2016) (operational; government claims overall length is 2,961 km)
standard gauge: 1,673 km (2016) 1.435-m gaugeUzbekistan
total: 4,642 km (2018)
broad gauge: 4,642 km (2018) 1.520-m gauge (1,684 km electrified)Venezuela
total: 447 km (2014)
standard gauge: 447 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge (41.4 km electrified)Vietnam
total: 2,600 km (2014)
standard gauge: 178 km (2014) 1.435-m gauge; 253 km mixed gauge
narrow gauge: 2,169 km (2014) 1.000-m gaugeWorld
total: 1,148,186 km (2013)
Zambia
total: 3,126 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 3,126 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge
note: includes 1,860 km of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA)Zimbabwe
total: 3,427 km (2014)
narrow gauge: 3,427 km (2014) 1.067-m gauge (313 km electrified)