alternatehistory.com

The rulers of 19th Century China really were not enamored with trains. They thought they were useless and that they "deprive us of defensive barriers, harm our fields and interfere with our feng shui."
It wasn't until 1895, after the Sino-Japanese war, that serious railroad construction began to emerge, but even by 1911, they had less than 6000 miles of track (the US had 250,000 miles at the same time).

Historians have long pondered why China was left behind by the industrial revolution, but this seems like a smoking gun.

No railroads means iron ore and coal resources can't be accessed. With no cheap way to receive raw materials from suppliers or to ship finished goods to customers, factories can't exist. People wind up cut off from the rest of civilization.

If you're looking for a good Chinese Meiji PoD, this seems like a good one.
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