Attitude changes; with that, others factors will follow.
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
Time and money!!
Modelcar Commitment....Proper design....Locations.....Who to have responsiblity and ownership.....Did I say money......Some workable way of financing, long term.....Citizens attitude.
Time and all the above more than I have left in my lifetime!!
Commitment....Proper design....Locations.....Who to have responsiblity and ownership.....Did I say money......Some workable way of financing, long term.....Citizens attitude.
Quentin
What do you mean by succeed?
This is how I view the way high speed rail will need to succeed.
1.) Speed
If you want Americans to chose rail over cars or air you need to make it convenient for them. A train going 110 mph is good for regional service and not long distance travel. However Americans are going to want faster service between cities. Although the current plan is to use existing right-of-ways that do serve more smaller cities and communities, and make it easier to draw in people from smaller cities into the larger urban areas; but as far intercity travel between major urban centers will require designated corridors 150 mph + . It would be expensive but would be worth the investment as studies show more of the countries population is living in cities and will offer a faster & more frequent service for travel, which brings me to my second point.
2.) Frequency
To make the train more convenient; frequency and the flexibility to travel at different intervals of the day to a city and even return the same day would be a huge plus to a lot of travelers.
3.) Co-operation with Mass Transit
A key issue is that once you get to an urban center it is difficult for there is no way to get around efficiently. The best way is to make Train stations in cities the hub of mass transit where light rail & buses could move travelers from the trains around the city to popular areas, and possibly invest in Personal Rapid Transit to taxi folk from the light rail and bus lines. Think about if you could drive to a station near you, use a park and ride option, take the train into the city and then just us mass transit for the rest of the day it would be a great travel option. If you make train stations the main transit center it could make travel flow a lot easier and not have people worrying if their would be a way to get around when they arrive.
4.) Keep Freight & Passenger separate
If you want passenger and freight trains to share the same right of way, there needs to be a separate track(s) for them. There operations cannot interfere with one another or else both operations suffer.
I know it's expensive to put all these things into effect, but if you make it convenient to a lot of people to travel by means of rail, it could pay off later, even if it does operate at a lose, the economic benefits, save in highway maintenance, less constrain on air travel, and a better option to travel would be worth the yearly loss. Every where else in the world the HS trains operate at a loss and yet they a vital components in their economies and travel, but you have to treat it like a component that co-operates with park and ride, and mass transit if it is going to prosper in the U.S.
That is how I see it. I am no expert by any means but I do know what would get me and many other people to make the train a more viable option for travel rather than an enjoyable vacation ride. These main reasons above would certainly get me to travel to cities and across the state more often then I do now.
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