<P> A transcontinental railroad is a contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders . Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single railroad, or over those owned or controlled by multiple railway companies along a continuous route . Although Europe is crisscrossed by railways, the railroads within Europe are usually not considered transcontinental, with the possible exception of the historic Orient Express . </P> <P> Transcontinental railroads helped open up unpopulated interior regions of continents to exploration and settlement that would not otherwise have been feasible . In many cases they also formed the backbones of cross-country passenger and freight transportation networks . </P>

How did transcontinental railroad differ from railroads in europe
find me the text answering this question