Lesson Theme: Special text. Railway System in Uzbekistan

Lesson 10. Theme: Reading and translation of special text. Railway System of Great Britain. Work with new special terms from professional dictionary. Discussion of reading material. Grammar: Present Perfect Tense.
The railway system in Great Britain is the oldest in the world; the world's first locomotive-hauled public railway opened in 1825. Most of the railway track is managed byNetwork Rail, which in 2010 had a network of 15,754 kilometres (9,789 mi) ofstandard-gauge lines, of which 5,249 kilometres (3,262 mi) are electrified. These lines range fromsingle to double toquadruple track. In addition, some cities have separate rail-based mass transit systems (including the extensive and historicLondon Underground). There are also severalprivate railways (some of them narrow-gauge), which are primarily short tourist lines. The British railway network is connected with that ofcontinental Europe by an undersea rail link, theChannel Tunnel, opened in 1994.
The United Kingdom is a member of theInternational Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for United Kingdom is 70. The UK has the 18th largest railway network in the world; despite many lines having closed in the 20th century it remains one of the densest rail networks. It is one of the busiest railways in Europe, with 20% more train services than France, 60% more than Italy, and more than Spain, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Portugal and Norway combined.
In 2010, there were 1.33 billion journeys on theNational Rail network, making the British network the fifth most used in the world (Great Britain ranks 23rd in world population). Unlike a number of other countries, rail travel in the United Kingdom has enjoyed a renaissance in recent years with kilometres/miles travelled matching and surpassing the highs of the 1940s (see usage figures below). This is partly attributed to a shift away from private motoring due to growing road congestion and increasing petrol prices, but also to the fact that travelling in general (for all modes) has increased with affluence.
Historical overview

The system was originally built as a patchwork of local rail links operated by small private railway companies. Over the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries, these amalgamated or were bought by competitors until only a handful of larger companies remained (see railway mania). The entire network was brought under government control during theFirst World War and a number of advantages of amalgamation and planning were revealed. However, the government resisted calls for thenationalisation of the network (first proposed by William Ewart Gladstoneas early as the 1830s). Instead, from 1 January 1923, almost all the remaining companies were grouped into the "big four", the Great Western Railway, the London and North Eastern Railway, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway and the Southern Railway companies (there were also a number of other joint railways such as the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway and the Cheshire Lines Committee as well as special joint railways such as the Forth Bridge Railway, Ryde PierRailway and at one time the East London Railway). The "Big Four" were joint-stock public companies and they continued to run the railway system until 31 December 1947.

The growth in road transport during the 1920s and 1930s greatly reduced revenue for the rail companies. Rail companies accused the government of favouring road haulage through the subsidised construction of roads. The railways entered a slow decline owing to a lack of investment and changes in transport policy and lifestyles. During the Second World War the companies' managements joined together, effectively forming one company. A maintenance backlog developed during the war and the private sector only had two years to deal with this after the war ended. After 1945, for both practical and ideological reasons, the government decided to bring the rail service into the public sector.
From the start of 1948, the "big four" were nationalised to form British Railways (latterly "British Rail") under the control of the British Transport Commission. Although BR was a single entity, it was divided into six (later five) regional authorities in accordance with the existing areas of operation. Though there were few initial changes to the service, usage increased and the network became profitable. Regeneration of track and stations was completed by 1954. In the same year, changes to the British Transport Commission, including the privatisation of road haulage, ended the coordination of transport in Great Britain. Rail revenue fell and in 1955 the network again ceased to be profitable. The mid-1950s saw the rapid introduction of diesel and electric rolling stock but the expected transfer back from road to rail did not occur and losses began to mount.

The desire for profitability led to a major reduction in the network during the mid-1960s with ICImanager Dr. Richard Beechinggiven the task by the government of re-organising the railways. Many branch lines (and a number of main lines) were closed because they were deemed uneconomic ("theBeeching Axe" of 1963), removing much feeder traffic from main line passenge