China was the last country in the world to build steam locomotives. The final main line engines emerged from Datong workshops in December 1988 and production of steam locomotives for industrial use continued intermittently until September 1999.

From over 4,000 steam locos in service on China Rail, the state-run national railway system at the beginning of 1996, the numbers dropped to single figures by the end of 2002. The final few were withdrawn in 2003 making China the world’s last country to use steam on its main lines. The Chinese authorities would like to see the last evidence of steam eradicated by the time of the 2008 Olympics.With the possible exception of a handful of remote industrial operations, it appears to be on course to achieve this target. When this happens, it will be the end of the world’s last mecca for fans of ‘real’ steam (commercial rather than preserved or museum operations) and scenes such as those shown in these pages will be history. Over a 10-year period these three photographers have visited China 35 times to create this photographic essay of a dying era. They show steam at work on C hina Rail, on ‘local’ railways – lines built and operated by individual provinces rather than the state, on industrial systems and on some of the many narrow gauge lines that once existed in China.

National Geographic-quality photography accompanied by entertaining tales of the problems of travelling in China. Definitely not just for the steam enthusiast!

ISBN: 1-90433-280-0 EAN: 9781904332800 Hardcover and jacket 176 pages 300 x 260 mm Retail Price: $34.95 Your Price: $29.95
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