How come building HSR can be this difficult in US?

[xizhimen]

How come building HSR can be this difficult in US?

 

[armchairPrivate]

NIMBY mentality. Special interest groups. Expensive private land appropriation. Flying is faster than train mentality. Driving is more convenient mentality. It is American and we do things differently mentality. The existing passenger trains Amtrak has had lack lustre records so it is hard to convince the general public that HSR is fast, convenient and reliable.

Passenger train service is heavily subsidised by the government. The right wing population regards government subsidy a communist policy. There is this eastcoast vs westcoast fight. The westcoast especially California is regarded to be liberal communist.

This is just not enough political will to build a HSR.

 

[Arya Desa]

Because trains are communist. Listen here boy, you better get that commie talk out of your mind.

 

[Juice]

Because of the way our settlement were spread....flying is preferred. You only take trains for local commutes or the "experience".

 

[KAL-EL]

I prefer teleportation like they do in The Tomorrow People.

 

[Juice]

Having spent my youth in Germany...a good rail system is handy. But in Germany...the next town is right down the road. I live in El Paso now.....middle of freaking no where. And most places down here are faaar apart. You need to get somewhere quick? You fly.

 

[Nan Yang]

How come building HSR can be this difficult in US?

Because there are more lawyers working on the California High Speed Rail than Enginners.

 

[Juice]

Because there are more lawyers working on the California High Speed Rail than Enginners.

Lol....There's that too...

 

[Edison Chen]

You are so funny. US does not need HSR, it's a vehicle society. People travel by vehicles, always.

 

[Tractor]

From the game GTA I know car and car dealers are important for people of USA .

 

[StarCraft_ZT]

You are so funny. US does not need HSR, it's a vehicle society. People travel by vehicles, always.

True. especially here in Texas, from what I have seen, you can hardly see people walking on the street except downtown. It's just vehicles, nothing else. Banks have drive-through ATMs, most fast restaurants have drive through window. It's too normal when you spend 30 minutes driving the highway to have a dinner. Without a car means you don't have legs.

 

[Juice]

You are so funny. US does not need HSR, it's a vehicle society. People travel by vehicles, always.

Funny you mentioned that. I showed my room mate this thread....he said the same thing "If you are in a hurry, you fly....if not, you drive"

True. especially here in Texas, from what I have seen, you can hardly see people walking on the street except downtown. It's just vehicles, nothing else. Banks have drive-through ATMs, most fast restaurants have drive through window. It's too normal when you spend 30 minutes driving the highway to have a dinner. Without a car means you don't have legs.

In El Paso we barely have a functioning bus system. If you don't have a car....you're scr#wed...

 

[Sashan]

U.S does not have that much density in terms of population and is huge so that HSR is not profitable. But there is a mix of the personal vehicles for short distances and flying available for long distances. Last that I know of it has 30,000 flights per day carrying more than a million passengers every day domestically which is multiple times more than any other country including China. So not sure HSR has a space in the transportation in US.

 

[Juice]

U.S does not have that much density in terms of population and is huge so that HSR is not profitable. But there is a mix of the personal vehicles for short distances and flying available for long distances. Last that I know of it has 30,000 flights per day carrying more than a million passengers every day domestically which is multiple times more than any other country including China. So not sure HSR has a space in the transportation in US.

Imagine trying to maintain a HSR line from El Paso to LA...lots of empty space....and it would have to be elevated so it didn't interfere with street traffic...and no one would use it except hippies.

 

[faithfulguy]

Because of the way our settlement were spread....flying is preferred. You only take trains for local commutes or the "experience".

I can imagine trains do well in NE. Between Boston, NY, Philly and DC. And its the only profitable Amtrack line in the US.