Hypertrains

A hypertrain consists an engine module and a number of other modules pulled behind. These can be any of a number of specialized cargo modules or a variety of passenger modules. Hypertrains travel exclusively on Major Routes. They are not designed to land on a planet but operate either from orbit to a portal gate or from the subspace side of a portal gate to the subspace side of another portal gate.
Within the Highlands the hypertrains allow a vast number of passengers to travel relatively cheaply between worlds. They allow a huge amount of both raw and manufactured material to be transport between the Major Route worlds.
In the Midlands hypertrains are very rare, although there are a few lines which travel on routes between private portal gates.
For any person without their own vehicle hypertrains are the preferred way to travel along the Major Routes.
A rather typical hypertrain is the WoodSocket Azariah which runs along Rt 221. It travels between WoodSocket and St. Martin, with stops at Port San Benedict, St Philopia and St. Lynn. The Azariah typically consists of an engine and 19 cars; 2 crew cars, 8 passenger cars, 2 luxury passenger cars, 2 dining cars, 3 couchette cars, a lounge car, and a baggage car.
This trip takes about two days. Upon arrival at its end stations it rotates crews and makes the return journey. The Azariah is one of a dozen passenger trains servicing this route. Passengers can transfer trains at either St. Philopia or St. Martin to the Rt. 232 trains or at the end station for trains which go up or down Rt. 221 out of the diocese.
The usefulness of the hypertrain system to Player Characters who lack their own transportation can not be stressed enough. Most times travel by hypertrain is efficient and rather boring, so the PCs can move from one place to another with nothing to note other than the passage of time. However a hypertrain can make an interesting adventure location in itself. Murder on the Orient Express comes to mind. Though very safe even hypertrains are sometimes struck by other vehicles (often because those other vehicles are being piloted manually rather than under an automatic beacon navigation system.) They do sometimes break down or meet an unexpected subspace storm.
Because distances traveled are measured in days rather than hours hypertrains do not have the pedantic scheduling concerns of railroads, however on routes where there are competitive train lines it is not unheard of for companies to push their real space transit and turn around times to shorten the trip, in the interest of bragging rights. Very much as passenger steamships were known to do in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Train car specifics to follow.