Re:Could High-Speed Rail Ease California’s Housing Crisis? S...
by pstuart on Friday January 25, 2019 @08:14PM
(#19004069)
My original point: "expand the current rail system so that it can handle even more freight as well as performant passenger service."
Right of ways are challenging. It's not about pushing freight off of existing lines, it's about investing in the rails we have now so that capacity and speed can be enhanced.
Re:Could High-Speed Rail Ease California’s Housing Crisis? S...
by kposehn on Friday January 25, 2019 @10:29PM
(#19004577)
> My original point: "expand the current rail system so that it can handle even more freight as well as performant passenger service
My own point: the freight rail system is optimized for freight. Nationalizing it does no good. Build a totally separate passenger rail network with different loading gauges, requirements and signaling that is designed for passenger trains.
The US freight rail network is the most efficient in the world for ton/mile/dollars. It crushes long-haul trucks for bulk/unit loads, manifest, intermodal...the list goes on.
It is in no need of nationalizing, and if you did that you'd end up with a vastly slower network built for something entirely different than what you're talking about.
Build a totally new network on better alignments/grades with higher speeds for passengers only. Leave the freight railroads to their work.