Railway proposals in 1840s Britain attracted enthusiasm as investors imagined new routes and transport profits. Railway investment combined real transformative technology with dangerous excitement.
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Parliamentary authorization, land acquisition and construction costs made each scheme economically distinct. Even brilliant infrastructure can be financed badly.
Promoters' promises deserved as much scrutiny as the tracks themselves. Some railway projects created lasting infrastructure while investors in others faced disappointment or heavy losses.
A transformative technology can generate valuable assets and a speculative overbuilding cycle at the same time. The eventual usefulness of railways doesn't vindicate every share price.
How do you price a future everyone is desperate to believe in?