Vatican City possesses its own entirely self-contained, completely functional international railway station, making it the shortest national railway system on the planet.

A closer look

Vatican City possesses its own entirely self-contained, completely functional international railway station, making it the shortest national railway system on the planet. Built in 1933, the tracks extend a glorious total of roughly one thousand feet before immediately crossing the border into Italy. While it was originally intended to transport the Pope around Europe in divine luxury, the pontiffs almost never actually used it for passenger travel, preferring cars and airplanes like normal modern monarchs. Today, the pristine marble station is primarily used to discreetly smuggle duty-free goods and freight into the holy city, functioning less as a spiritual transit hub and more as a highly exclusive papal loading dock