One noticeable change in transportation over time has involved speed. Technology has often been at the forefront of these changes. The advent of the railroad gave travelers a unique and novel experience. Consider the experience of this traveler:

“There is something very exhilarating in the act of being borne through a beautiful country at the rate of fifteen miles and hour…. [The trip was filled] with images as beautiful and varied as are brought to the eye by every turn of a kaleidoscope.”

One way to judge the issue of speed is to examine the size and style of signs. Consider the following signs. How large is the sign? What size and style of font is used? What does the appearance of the sign say about how it's intended to be viewed? Click on the image to see the full context.

      

Social and economic status has an influence on the experience of travel. The concept of tiered levels of comfort is common. Trains and ships, for example, usually have first-class accommodations for passengers who are willing to spend more money.

Access to improved travel conditions is not universal, though. Some people who would like to travel first-class cannot afford it. Additionally, a person's racial or ethnic background has been used in the past to deny access. Writing about one train, historian John A. Jakle noted that “the train contained a ‘Jim Crow’ car jammed with blacks standing in the aisles. There followed several untidy and nearly empty coaches for whites.”

 

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Speed and Status

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