Not only was this rail a positive influence, it was the biggest influence of the time period. This rail connected the east to the west; no other rail could do that. Although this rail was enormously popular in the beginning, the legacy of the Transcontinental Railroad has dimmed over the years. Although many trains are still used in other countries, the main option for land transportation is car. Airplanes have also trumped trains, but if a heavy load is needed most still depend on train. The transcontinental railroad is not in use today because most old railroads got ripped apart for the war effort. The transcontinental railroad deservers iconic status because without the transcontinental railroad people in the 1800s would still be hauling all these things in a carriage, and most of the cities would be considered “bad places to start a city” on carriage wouldn’t have been created. Back in this time period there were cars, but these cars weren’t nearly as fast as a train, and needed constant repair. So which one would you pick, more difficult, risky, and sketchy one thousand dollar route on boat or carriage or the easier more relaxed one hundred fifty dollar route on train?…