Over time, the way we’ve travelled has changed, and so has the way we power our transport.

From using coal to power steam engines to using clean energy from renewable sources to move trains, railways have not stopped improving since being invented.

The railway system has grown to meet the demand of an increasing population and it has had to keep getting faster too.

Watch the video below to discover how the need to move people and goods faster and further has changed our lifestyle and the environment.

The Industrial Revolution sparked changes that continue to shape the world we know today.

The invention of the steam engine meant people started to use machines to move goods and get from place to place. Coal was needed by the growing number of factories and so the steam powered locomotive was developed to transport large amounts of heavy coal around the country.

This led to a rapid expansion of the railways, which brought widespread changes that shaped modern Britain as we know it.

Stephenson’s Rocket, although not the first steam locomotive, is one of the most significant, as it combined many new technologies to create a steam engine that was faster and more reliable than anything seen before.

Using the same energy source as Rocket combined with new engineering solutions such as streamlining, a locomotive called Mallard set the record for fastest steam locomotive in 1938 at 126 miles per hour.

There was a general sense that life was speeding up as speed records were being set on land, sea and in the air.

Diesel began to replace coal as the fuel for engines, as it was more efficient and cheaper.

Electric locomotives also became more widespread from the late 1800s. These were powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or on-board energy storage, such as a battery.

The diesel-powered High-Speed Train (Intercity 125) significantly reduced journey times, changing the perception of rail travel in Britain.

The rail network grew as the population increased and people moved further away from cities. People relied on trains to travel to work and go on holiday.

With this expansion came international connections, allowing people to travel overseas by train. Eurostar is a high-speed train that directly links the UK to mainland Europe via the Channel Tunnel.

Modern developments in engineering have continued to affect how we travel. Most high-speed trains today are powered by electricity, and this electricity can be generated in different ways.

Fossil fuels have mainly powered the growth of transport and cities. Since the Industrial Revolution, most countries across the world have been using fossil fuels to provide most of their energy.

When fossil fuels are burned to make electricity they release carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, which add to the greenhouse effect and increases global warming.

Petrol and diesel power most of our cars, lorries and trains, and transport currently accounts for around a quarter of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions.

Railways are an efficient mode of transport, producing less greenhouse emissions per person, because each journey is shared by tens or hundreds of people.

In the future, more and more vehicles on road and rail will be powered by renewable energy, which do not contribute to global warming.

There are other ways to make electricity that do not produce harmful greenhouse gases. Renewable energy is a natural source of energy that will never run out, such as wind, solar power and water. These sources can be used to generate electricity, which can power vehicles.

The High-Speed railway link to the Channel Tunnel became the first train line in the UK to fully operate on renewable energy in 2020. In the Netherlands, wind energy powers many of the trains on the national rail network.

Other technologies are being developed to help reduce our reliance on fossil fuels too. Magnetic levitation trains (Maglev) use superconducting magnets to lift and propel a train along a track and do not rely on polluting fossil fuels.

Hydrogen vehicles use a non-polluting chemical reaction to generate electricity, and hydrogen-powered trains have been tested on the UK’s rail network.

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