This map shows some of the differences between different parts of the world. Europe shines brightest with its advanced network of high speed trains which make it possible to travel almost anywhere without a car. In North America on the other hand, trains are mostly used to carry freight across enormous distances. In Africa, most of the railroads were built by European colonizers to carry goods to the coast to be shipped back to Europe. And in Australia the longest trains in the world with more than 500 cars carry coal and minerals across the outback.