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Alaska should have been linked by rail to the U.S./Canadian/Mexican network by mid twentieth century. That would not be just for the sake of Alaska, but it would also help open up the more remote areas of Canada. A rail link would facilitate the shipment of lumber, minerals, oil, and gas out and manufactured goods and food going in. Such a rail line would be similar in length, terrain, and remoteness to the Trans-Siberian Railway. Imagine the spectacular scenery viewed from passenger trains! The national defense importance cannot be overlooked either. It's a wonder that such a railway was not built during World War II or during the 1950's when the DEW Line was built. In addition to the radar sites, interceptor bases, dispersal fields originally built for SAC bombers, the Army has usually maintained a brigade up there. The area is large and important enough for one or more divisions. I was not aware of plans for a Stryker Brigade in Alaska. It does make sense. All of the armored vehicles are supposed to fit into C-130's and could range throughout northern Asia. Why would an Alaska-based unit benefit from a continental rail link? In wartime or the beginning of a crisis, such units would deploy by air and be resupplied by sea unless it is a small raid to a remote location. Air and sea transport assets would be in great demand in war and too expensive for routine peacetime logistical support. Currently we can use an all highway route through Canada or a combination of ship, Alaska RR and/or truck for military and civilian transport. That is why the cost of living, industry and defense up there is so high. There may not be a single compelling reason for building a railroad to Alaska, but the combination of raw material shipment, heavy industry, merchandise freight, local passenger travel, tourism, and defense are reasons for building a railroad to our largest and most remote state. Those very same reasons are why the big three North American nations should re-invest in their railway systems and upgrade for higher frequency, higher speeds, and heavier tonnages. Likewise, those are the same reasons for also building a comprehensive space transportation system at the same time. Expensive? Not compared with the cost of paying for more oil wars, paying people not to work, and paying for consumer goods imported from third-rate countries whose workers labor under near slave-labor conditions while our standard of living continues to slide down the toilet.
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