Are steam trains good for the environment?

A steam locomotive is about 10% energy efficient. That means that for every 100 shovels of coal that go into the firebox, 90 go up the chimney in the form of combustion products. Compare this with a diesel locomotive, which is about 35% energy efficient. Steam locomotives are also heavy on water, using up to several thousand gallons per trip. The water once converted into steam is exhausted into the atmosphere where it becomes part of the water cycle. In countries where water is at a premium steam locomotives have often been fitted with condensers which recycle the steam back into the loco's own water tanks. That said, a steam train carrying 500 people a given distance is going to create a lot less pollution than an aircraft travelling the same distance or 500 people each driving a car. Steam locomotives also last a very long time. Decades, even a century or more. Compare that with a car which lasts on average about 10 years and when it rolls off the production line has already taken ...  more