Question about high speed rail in the US (examples, v, Chicago)
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Because the Northeast Corridor serves the densest population concentration in the country, the quadruple track infrastructure, and full electrification already exists. All of which has been in the making since the government seized control of the corridor in the 70s. Even then those tracks are already in place, imagine trying to compile a network across the country from scratch.
Dense population areas are where high speed rail makes sense. Putting high speed rail in fly-over country isn't smart.
The high speed rail we have in the northeastern corridor competes with air travel. Why would the situation be different elsewhere?
And as I stated earlier, why would anyone take a high speed train from coast to coast when it would still take much, much longer than a plane? Its still a train that must traverse an entire continent with more than a few requisite stops.
Yes, some countries like France and Japan have excellent high speed rail systems- and those are countries that are as big as one of our states.
This really is not a right-left issue. Is it possible some are letting romance hinder their judgement on what is practical?
The Northeast Corridor is used by at least 450,000 people daily , whether on Amtrak or the Various Commuter lines that operate along the corridor. The Northeast Corridor , Keystone Corridor and Virgina are the only profitable & heavily used parts of Amtrak. Hench why Amtrak is about to overhaul there Northeast Corridor fleet , aka Amtrak Regional , to hold up 1600 passengers. Amtrak along the NEC has dropped there prices...the lowest an Acela Ticket will cost you end to end is 120$ with all the discounts. People in the Northeast are also slowly repairing and restoring our system back to pre-1950s level. Amtrak regional is now at a permanent of 49$ , with Discounts you can knock that down to 20$. The Trains are at 97% capacity , 18 out the 24 hrs. New Wires , Bridges , Tunnels , Interlocks , Tracks and the Right Voltage West of New Haven will allow Amtrak to hit 190mph tops and averages of 170-80 depending on the Congestion. Amtrak has ordered 7 new Acela's to meet the demand. The Acela was mostly mean't for business travelers ,Amtrak Regional is mean't for everybody else. Both are very crowded now The Airlines have screwed themselves and alot people are taking Amtrak along the Northeast Corridor
Lets explore some of the Different speeds along the Northeast Corridor
150mph Max allowed only a small section has it currently, CT / Rhode Island Border - Boston Won't increase , but more capacity will be added for more train trips. Up to 7+ more
And as I stated earlier, why would anyone take a high speed train from coast to coast when it would still take much, much longer than a plane? Its still a train that must traverse an entire continent with more than a few requisite stops.
Yes, some countries like France and Japan have excellent high speed rail systems- and those are countries that are as big as one of our states.
This really is not a right-left issue. Is it possible some are letting romance hinder their judgement on what is practical?
But the problem is you have liberals seriously talking about banning air travel, or limiting it severely because of manbearpig.....
I took the high speed train from Paris CDG (the airport) to Valence just south of Lyon. The distance was around 350 miles and it took 2 hours and 20 minutes.
The alternative would have been to fly to Lyon, rent a car and drive another 80-100 miles to my destination. The economics didn't make sense and neither did the timing.
High speed rail makes sense 1) as part of an integrated transportation strategy, 2) for distances up to 500 miles, 3) for smaller cities which do not have a major airport and 4) for city to city travel.
High speed rail does not replace roads or air travel, it complements it. Neither does the subsidy argument work. Roads are heavily subsidized from taxes as are airlines. The truth is that an efficient transportation network will always be dependent on public money so you want to see how you get the best bang for the buck.
I took the high speed train from Paris CDG (the airport) to Valence just south of Lyon. The distance was around 350 miles and it took 2 hours and 20 minutes.
The alternative would have been to fly to Lyon, rent a car and drive another 80-100 miles to my destination. The economics didn't make sense and neither did the timing.
High speed rail makes sense 1) as part of an integrated transportation strategy, 2) for distances up to 500 miles, 3) for smaller cities which do not have a major airport and 4) for city to city travel.
High speed rail does not replace roads or air travel, it complements it. Neither does the subsidy argument work. Roads are heavily subsidized from taxes as are airlines. The truth is that an efficient transportation network will always be dependent on public money so you want to see how you get the best bang for the buck.
How about these trips:
New York-Los Angeles
San Francisco-Miami
Seattle- Las Vegas
Anchorage-Atlanta
Boston-San Diego
Chicago-Jacksonville
Washington DC-Phoenix
Can you justify a high speed rail for any of these or the numerous other examples that could be offered?
I agree with you about subsidies. Thing is, are you going to add a huge boondoggle to the list? Would it not make sense to help metro areas improve the light rail they have or, as some of us have pleaded, so simply restrict high speed rail to specific regions?
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The Airlines have screwed themselves and alot people are taking Amtrak along the Northeast Corridor
