Local farmers living alongside the railway take the small train to the fair in town. /CGTN Photo
In 1938, the Sino-British Jiayang Coal Mine was established in Bajiaogou. Twenty years later, the 19.84-kilometer-long railway was constructed to transport coal produced. The tracks are 762 millimeters wide, half of the nationwide standard. Even today, some retired coal miners remember how the narrow-gauge railroad changed their way of working.
"We had to carry the coal out of the town by manpower in the beginning. After the railway was opened, the coal was hauled by the train to the dock and then ferried to Chongqing," said 92-year-old Chen Shaorong, telling CGTN that the coal was used to produce steel.
Later, the train began to carry villagers living alongside the railway to fairs in town and schools or homes of their relatives. The carriages would get extremely crowded on the days of the fair, when local farmers would bring their farm products or even poultry for trade.
"I've taken this train since I was in my 20s. Now I am in my 60s. You can imagine how many times I've taken it over these years," said local farmer Li Yueyin.
In recent years, tourists from home and abroad come to visit the time-honored vehicle, which is widely considered the last narrow-gauge passenger steam train in China and even the world. During good seasons, especially spring when all kinds of flowers bloom, many swarm here to experience the so-called "living fossil of the Industrial Revolution."
