OBAMA TO ANNOUNCE $8 BILLION HIGH-SPEED RAIL PLAN AFTER STATE OF THE UNION SPEECH

"Obama to Announce $8 Billion High-Speed Rail Plan After State of the Union Speech" Wednesday, January 27, 2010 By Julie Pace, Associated Press

SNIPPET: "Washington (AP) - A day after delivering a State of the Union address aimed at showing recession-weary Americans he understands their struggles, President Barack Obama intends to award $8 billion in stimulus funds to develop high-speed rail corridors and sell the program as a jobs creator.

Obama and Vice President Joe Biden plan to announce grants for 13 major corridors during a town hall meeting in Tampa, Fla., Thursday..."

Europe has 50% more people on 60% less land, the cities are more compact, and the personal auto transit system is not as developed. The short distances between cities make air travel a hassle, and government subsidies are the only thing that keep the faster train companies solvent.

France and Spain have population densities similar to the Eastern US - 220 people per sq. mile.

The idea that Europe doesn't have a well developed personal auto system is silly. I guess you've never driven in Europe on the Autobahn, Autostrada, etc.? Its just like in the US, except their roads are in way better shape and far better designed, and you can drive much faster, and half the drivers are in what we would call high end/luxury models (Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Volvo).

Distances between European cities are not "short" unless you are thinking of just going around the Netherlands or Belgium. Medium distance? Maybe. Paris - Frankfurt or Cologne - Munich or Milan to Rome = 360 miles. About the same as Cleveland to Chicago or New York to Richmond or San Diego to San Francisco. Madrid to Berlin is 1500 miles - sames as New York to Dallas! Europe is actually really big - in fact, bigger than the US with Alaska and Hawaii - 3.8 million square miles. That's only slightly smaller than the size of the lower 48 states (CONUS) + the 100 mile strip of Canada where 95% of Canadians live + all of Mexico. Population of Europe is about 700 million. Population of US + Mexico + 100 mile strip of Canada is 500 million.

I hope the Cato Institute had its facts together a little better than you!

Quote:

SUMMARY INDEX SNIPPET - quote:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-and-releases

Statements and Releases

January 28, 2010
President Obama, Vice President Biden to Announce $8 Billion for High-Speed Rail Projects Across the Country
January 28, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Northeast Region
January 28, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Tampa - Orlando - Miami
January 28, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Pontiac-Detroit-Chicago
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Eugene - Portland - Seattle - Vancouver, B.C.
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Ft. Worth Area
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program:Iowa
January 27, 2010
State of the Union Viewer’s Guide
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Cleveland - Columbus - Dayton - Cincinnati
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Charlotte - Raleigh - Richmond - Washington, D.C.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-and-releases?page=1
Statements and Releases

January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: California
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Minneapolis/St. Paul - Madison - Milwaukee - Chicago
January 27, 2010
Fact Sheet: High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail Program: Chicago - St. Louis - Kansas City

While the population density of France is about the same as the NE, France is as big as the NE and California combined.

In another article, "Yet the metropolitan population density of the United States is still about one-fourth that of Germany. New York, our densest city, has approximately one-third the number of inhabitants per square mile as Frankfurt." "One third of EU citizens live in cities of over a million people, rising to 80% living in urban areas generally." Compact cities in densly populated countries.

All of the EU is only 1.7 million sq mi, less than a quarter of the US. Europe is much smaller than you think. It's far from Madrid to Berlin, about 1100 miles, but about 30% shorter than you say. If you wish to start including the non-high-speed rail areas of Eastern Europe to the Urals and through to Turkey in your comparison, let me know.

While Europe has some very good highways, only a few people travel on them, and those people don't travel very far. I'll get back to you an the total miles by rail and road/ person /year in both areas later.

While the population density of France is about the same as the NE, France is as big as the NE and California combined.

Exactly, France is huge. Its the same size and a LOWER density as NY+PA+NJ+MD+VA+OH. Iberia (Spain+Portugal) has a similar size and lower density.

Bad comparison. Since WWII and the expulsion of the Prussians and Sudetens, Germany is small and dense. Germany is 2/3 the size of France and has 1/3 more people.

But since you bring up Frankfurt, Frankfurt has just 670,000 people on 96 square miles. New York has 8 million people on 305 sq. miles. Metro Frankfurt has 5.8 million people on 5700 sq. mile. Metro New York has 19 million people on 6700 sq. miles. I don't think the person you are quoting has a clue about math or stats.

All of the EU is only 1.7 million sq mi, less than a quarter of the US. Europe is much smaller than you think.

US, with Alaska, 3.8 million sq. miles. CONUS is 3.1 million sq. miles. The EU only, which is less than half of the European landmass, is certainly over 1/4 the size of the US. Ukraine, White Russia, Russia, Serbia, Croatia, Moldova, Albania, Bosnia, Switzerland, Norway are all part of Europe, but not EU.

If you want to define Europe as EU, why not remove the least dense portions of the US like the Alaska, Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, and Oregon? That's 1,300,000 sq. miles of nothing (8 million inhabitants)? Non EU portions of Europe are the least dense as well.

It's far from Madrid to Berlin, about 1100 miles, but about 30% shorter than you say.

My numbers were road distances off mapquest, not as the crow flies.

If you wish to start including the non-high-speed rail areas of Eastern Europe to the Urals and through to Turkey in your comparison, let me know.

Russia and Turkey both have high speed rail! They aren't "non high speed rail areas" And I'm not including Anatolia as Europe.

I've driven on European highways. They have traffic just like we have, they have urban traffic jams (Berlin highways at rush hour suck). The total miles are different because Europe has a better rail system so more people can use it to go places and commute to work, not because of a shortage of cars, and because European gas taxes are high enough to make highways actually pay their own way, as opposed to the massive subsidies they get in the US out of general funds and property taxes. User fees in the US pay just half the cost of highways. http://www.subsidyscope.com/transportation/highways/funding/

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