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Gotta come down on the side of Tightwad on this subject. Speaking from ignorance only shows how little you know.
Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see rail travel come back.
I am a card carrying member of the Train Collectors Association...
It's just I think there are other more pressing issues right now than high speed rail....
That plus the fact I get real skeptical every time I see a FUD phrase
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But the crunch is coming
Can you tell me what this means?
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By 2040, there will be 100 million more Americans and those folks will concentrate where people live today.
With a major population shift from northern states to the south how do they know where people will be living in 30 years??????
This article sounds like more of the same from the same bunch who preached the global warming scam.....
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Rail is part of the future. It's green. It's high tech. It can be built by Americans in America. And it's inevitable.
I like the way when it comes to the green movement everything "is inevitable"
And "built in America" when we can buy proven technology overseas for less then what it will take for America to design and build their own high speed trains. OH, and of course the factories will have to be built which means at least 10 years before the EPA would approve any factory sites.....
Take a look at other-than-green-website and see what they say about high speed rail in America:
I've lived in Japan where rail use is common. In fact I used them everyday. And there is no way that system will work in America. While individual states may have regions rail use is practical, there's no point is spending federal funds on it.
The drive to "make us more like Europe" is pathetic.
How about a drive to make us not in debt? I know, I know, a $80 billion dollar rail will return millions in fares, and using government math that's a profit.
If there's a concern about an extra 100 million people, lets work towards reducing that number.
If the concern is being green, how about we halt the crime wave and encourage people to live in city cores? Low cost housing without frequent rapes and murders? Now that is a progressive idea. Then simple commuter rail and buses can be used.
But this high speed rail is so cool and we gotta have it to prove to the world we are so hip idea is pathetic.
Like it or not America is going to have to built new passenger rails or get left behind. And......we are going to have to pay for it!
"I interviewed William Withuhn, Curator of the history of technology and transportation at the Smithsonian Institution. He said: "America doesn't get rail transportation. The politicians don't understand trains because most have never ridden one. The press is all caught up in Amtrak not making a profit as if that's somehow remarkable. Roads and airports don't make money either. In the 1960s, we had same inane arguments. Critics saying: rail is not like other transportation systems, America is too big and not like other countries. People won't ride trains here...In the meantime, other countries--lots of them now--have moved ahead and built these sleek, efficient and awesome machines. They get rail, but we don't"
I have no problem with it as long as they are priavte rail and pay their way. Otherwise the funding availabilty just isn't there for such a massive infrastruture new build.Likely the most funding will go to maintain transport rail becuase it makes more sense.Even commuter rial is i trouble fiancially i mnay araes altho industry and cities suuport it to bring work to city to maintain industry there.Rail i america died witht eh airplane for transportig humans and is a losing propostion bascially.The rial system i other countirees where decided on long ago just liike our hghway system we have.We don't even spend all the money collect on fuel atcx o out highways system really.
I'm ready for rail to make a resurgence. Even if it isn't 200 mph trains, it's a good idea. Yes, I would travel cross-country or across the state if the option were available and somewhat convenient.
What is all the complaining about people wanting us to be like Europe about? A weak Federal arm and strong States rights is just like Europe, and I hear that idea thrown into conversation frequently.
I've lived in Japan where rail use is common. In fact I used them everyday. And there is no way that system will work in America. While individual states may have regions rail use is practical, there's no point is spending federal funds on it.
The drive to "make us more like Europe" is pathetic.
How about a drive to make us not in debt? I know, I know, a $80 billion dollar rail will return millions in fares, and using government math that's a profit.
If there's a concern about an extra 100 million people, lets work towards reducing that number.
If the concern is being green, how about we halt the crime wave and encourage people to live in city cores? Low cost housing without frequent rapes and murders? Now that is a progressive idea. Then simple commuter rail and buses can be used.
But this high speed rail is so cool and we gotta have it to prove to the world we are so hip idea is pathetic.
I guess you haven't been to the Northeast , but we are pushing 18,000 miles of restored Railway Urban And Regional Rail by 2050..... Our rail system is about connecting cities and Towns , and servicing dense corridors.....this isn't like the Midwest or south its pretty dense here or our towns are dense....
I'm all for Railroads but ultimately its about the money, companies have to turn a profit if the Railroads are going to make a come back! We need more railroads for freight transport to keep these ever increasing semi trucks off the Interstates its getting worse by the day and dangerous as well!
The new florida governor is crazy. The first HSR lines we should build are LA to San Fran and Tampa to Orlando to Miami. These are 2 of our biggest states and they are both struggling mightily right now. This would prop them up and set them on a course for 21st century success. Once these lines were proven successful HSR would spread throughout the country. Its sad when a governor makes a decision based on his personal political situation rather than what is best for the state
And in the meantime our newly elected governor (I'm proud to say I did not vote for him) has announced he's not in favor of taking the federal money that has been offered for the first phase of a high speed rail system that will, eventually, extend from Chicago to Omaha.
Rail isn't only thing this idiot doesn't understand.
Maybe the "idiot" understands the cost per passenger mile better than some of the "idiots" posting here do!
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