Rail transportation: West Germany: The phoenix rises: The German rail system rates among Europe's finest, perhaps partly because it sprang from the rubble of 1945

During World War II, the German Federal Railway — and anything capable of ground transport of military materiel and manpower on wheels — was systematically blasted by Allied air power in wall-to-wall or “carpet” bombing throughout the length and breadth of Germany and the occupied countries. Thus, the mainline routes were completely disrupted, the rolling stock and traction equipment were almost totally destroyed; commuter lines, and even Berlin's subway — one of Europe's oldest urban systems — were brought to a standstill. A fierce and grotesque battle was fought in the tunnels of Berlin's subway (U-Bahn) as Wehrmacht, Waffen SS grenadiers, and Russian troops utilized the underground cars to transport their forces during the final phases of the Battle of Berlin.