Abstract: With recent advances in highly efficient air travel, high-speed railway, and highway, abandonment of traditional railway in China and elsewhere is on the rise． Developed nations in the west commonly try to optimize utilization of abandoned railway resources． Research and practical applications in China, however, are still new． In this study we reviewed published articles from both domestic and international groups, to establish a database for restoration of abandoned railways． This is valuable for restoration of abandoned railways in China． It was found that repurposing abandoned railways into greenways was a widely adopted practice in the west, mainly in the United States, Europe and in Australia． Research on abandoned railways was found to focus on functional implications, decision-making models for restoration and upgrading, economic, social, and health benefits analysis, user evaluations, restoration and upgrading models． Ecological restorations of abandoned railways rarely stressed significance of abandoned railways as habitats for different living species． There is a knowledge gap in diagnosing ecological problems, analyzing ecological patterns, proposing concepts and methods for ecological restoration, and quantitatively evaluating the ecological benefits (such as carbon sequestration value) associated with abandoned railways． In this study we propose that ecological restoration of abandoned railways should be considered an important research topic． Future research should integrate ecological issues into decision-making frameworks． Attention should be paid to multi-benefit comprehensive evaluation models and to stakeholders in both planning and management stages．