https://www.floridarail.com/news/a-brief-history-of-short-line-railroads-in-america/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/6-engineering-trends-that-are-pioneering-the-future-of-rail-freight-sustainability/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/7-rail-freight-statistics-every-shipper-needs-to-know-infographic/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/understanding-the-3-systems-that-make-up-the-national-rail-network/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/what-kind-of-freight-can-you-ship-by-rail/
https://www.floridarail.com/contact-us/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/a-brief-history-of-short-line-railroads-in-america/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/7-rail-freight-statistics-every-shipper-needs-to-know-infographic/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/understanding-the-3-systems-that-make-up-the-national-rail-network/
https://www.floridarail.com/news/what-kind-of-freight-can-you-ship-by-rail/
https://www.floridarail.com/contact-us/
#7 - American Passenger trains have a more diverse ridership
I will leave it at that
I think the main reason passenger trains never caught on in America is due to the vast distances involved.
In Europe, the distances between major cities is much shorter, making their trains basically "commuter trains", which is a model that works very well in America. Even going from Berlin to Paris (one of the longer trips) can be completed in a day by train as it's only about 550 miles.
Travelling any further than that on a train can become very uncomfortable as anybody who has ever tried an overnight journey on a train can attest. I tried a sleeper car on Amtrak once going cross country and I am not a fan.
However, I love my commuter trains which get me to Manhattan and back from my Connecticut home (70 miles away) in reasonable time.
“American trains typically have one powerful locomotive at the front that pulls the entire train”
nonsense.
Hahaha. The Fed Gov has allowed far too much consolidation of the railway companies, and in the great tradition of American corporations, with no competition they have slashed work forces and maintenance because customers have no choice but to accept the delays and prices charged and safety and maintenance are of little concern.
It's the same with airlines, banks, gas and electric companies: they all provide high costs, high risks and zero customer service with the approval of the government.
And that is exactly what killed the intercontinental railroad that Obama talked about back in 2011.
I’d like to say it’s like Captain Obvious….as someone growing up under a train nut.
I have to question some of those aspects though, in light of the fact the English refused to adopt the brilliant car-coupler system developed in America. That’s why they, and many other Euro rolling stock, have those silly bumpers - trying to keep men hooking up chains from getting squished.
The knuckle coupler made a huge impact on US RR, which UK would not follow.
Railfan post!
US Fed.gov took passenger rail away from the rail companies, after airplanes and road destroyed their original business model, after having been weakened by Federal regulation for many years
I would argue Fed.gov has done NOTHING AT ALL to improve passenger rail
Although we can only engage in “what if” thinking and counterfactional analysis - IF passenger rail had been left in private hands, America would likely have a viable and competitive cross-country passenger rail system.
We have no way to know, because we have now had 50+ years of total Fed.gov control.
When our european friends visit, they are stunned by the size of the USA. We had visitors from England that though they could rent a car and drive from JFK airport to Oklahoma City and about 4 hours when they planned their first visit.
The high speed trains for short trips in Europe are great. London-Paris, Paris-Cologne or Brussels, etc. 200 mph and 3-4 hrs on a train is fine and they’re much more comfortable than an airplane, plus you don’t have the security and check in hassles. We don’t have major cities located that close together though unless it’s in the Northeast and they’re amply served by trains already. Nobody is going to take a train from New York to Chicago, it would take too long, they’re always going to fly. Likewise nobody takes a train from Madrid to Stockholm either, that would be silly because you’d spend a couple of days on a train. Europeans will fly that also.
Measuring the superiority of the European vs. the North American rail system is a highly subjective opinion, but what I do know is that when I discuss railroad engineering and operations with European counterparts one of the things I often hear from them is that they're staggered by the size and weight of the freight trains we operate here in North America.
“The only downside of this wider gauge is that it isn’t compatible with Europe’s smaller standard gauge, so American trains cannot run on European tracks and vice versa.”
Well there goes the planned railroad bridge across the Atlantic!
Seriously, this is both poorly considered writing and poor editing.
“American trains vs. European trains, there are six main factors that help make each one stand apart: their freight-to-passenger ratio, funding, rail infrastructure, train designs, operating procedures, and government regulations.”
IN otherwords... a 60% - 70% income tax to pay for the rail system.
“Most railways in Europe use the standard gauge of 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in). “
This article lacks cred.
Form follows function....................
The sum of the differences between the two systems also helps explain why “high speed passenger” rail is seen more often in Europe than in the U.S.
And were it not for that, the U.S. has fewer densly populated city-to-city routes that can warrant (and pay for) “high speed” passenger rail (given cost per mile considerations against expected revenue per mile) than Europe. The “Northeast Corridor” - Boston to Washington D.C. - is about the only route that could make “high speed rail” a profitable proposition.
Who would have guessed that freight and passenger trains are different.
WWWG* say?
*What Would Willie Green