Posted on 04/23/2010 11:21:29 AM PDT by Willie Green
Like the gleam on the tracks from an oncoming locomotive, high-speed rail transportation in the United States may be finally coming into sight. Before the end of the decade, rail backers promise, Americans will be traveling on bullet trains, the way Europeans and Asians have been doing for half a century. At speeds of up to 220 mph, high-speed rail will make it possible to travel from Los Angeles to San Francisco in less than three hours, or half the time it takes to drive. Tampa to Orlando will take less than an hour, or 35 percent faster than by car. You'll be able to get from Chicago to St. Louis in less time than it takes to fly -- after you factor in the hours spent getting to and from distant airports and the hassle of getting through security 90 minutes before your flight.
The myriad benefits of high-speed rail have long been apparent to anyone who has ridden Japan's Shinkansen trains or France's TGV. These so-called bullet trains are faster than driving, more comfortable and convenient for short distances than flying and, because they run on electricity, don't rely on foreign oil imports. Trains arrive in downtown city centers and are usually linked to public transit.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
And a lot of Greenies need a good movement. Maybe a Fleet one.
Confession: I can't think of Pruis without being reminded of Priapus. It's as if the took the ap out of out it. Then I think of The AP which leads to thinking of scams then government and back to Priapus, and so on....
...because that would be like decrying the unsafety of commercial jets by referring to the Hindenburg disaster.
Even if the exact same technologies were employed in subways and trains, the organizational, logistical, and practical differences between daily subway commuting and long-distance, high-speed train travel make it prudent to make a distinction between the two.
I'm getting a lot of flak here from various quarters (some of it downright abusive) - I think because people are (falsely) assuming that I'm in favor of gargantuan federally-funded and -mandated programs. I'm not. But I think that a dispassionate examination of all the facts is in order.
Regards,
You’re mistaken.
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