China Railway
Shanghai–Kunming Corridor
On December 28, 2016, China Railway opened the final section of the Shanghai–Kunming High‑Speed Railway, creating one of the longest east‑west HSR corridors in the world.
North British Railway
Dundee, Scotland
On December 28, 1879, the North British Railway’s Tay Bridge collapsed during a violent storm, sending a passenger train into the River Tay and killing all aboard. It remains one of the deadliest and most famous bridge failures in railroad history.
Ferrovie dello Stato
Messina, Sicily
The catastrophic 1908 Messina earthquake on December 28 destroyed large portions of Ferrovie dello Stato (FS) rail lines, stations, and rolling stock in Sicily and Calabria, severely disrupting transportation across the Strait of Messina.
The first municipally owned streetcars take to the streets in San Francisco.
Egyptian National Railways
Cairo
On December 28, 1950, Egyptian National Railways formally authorized and began procurement for its first major wave of mainline diesel locomotives, marking the start of dieselization in Egypt.
Pre-FEVE narrow‑gauge companies
Cantabria and Basque Country
On December 28, 1895, severe winter storms along Spain’s northern coast prompted emergency reconstruction on several narrow‑gauge lines that would later form part of FEVE.
RailScanPro subscribers get access to our complete archive of railroad historical events, with advanced search, filtering, and the ability to explore events by railroad, location, and era.