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| Source: http://m24digital.com/en/2010/10/26 |
Transportation is becoming a big problem in the US. Things
like grid-lock and CO2 emission are more prevalent than ever before.
One solution to this (that is very effective in Europe) is the use of
high-speed rails. Many civil engineers are looking at how this technology can
be adapted for use in the United States.
High-speed rails are passenger trains that reach speeds of
over 200 mph. There are two types of high-speed railways: magnetic levitation (aka:
maglev) and conventional. There are advantages and disadvantages to each. The maglev is the ideal high-speed rail. It
travels faster, doesn't run on fossil fuel, is more quiet than conventional railways and
requires less maintenance. So why don’t we go with maglev? Mostly because it
costs a lot more; the maglev would need an entirely new set of tracks. Although
the conventional high-speed rail wouldn't reach speeds as high as the maglev, it could run on the current
network of railroad tracks. It would simply share "existing passenger rail services and freight services."
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| Source: http://soulofamerica.com/interact/soulofamerica-travel-blog |
Europe has invested in a highly effective upgrade in
transportation. They have laid out a network of high-speed railways, some of
which run through multiple countries.
One of the main reasons high-speed rails are so effective in Europe is because
of how the population is laid out. Most of the population is in big cities and
those cities are relatively close to eachother. For this reason, connecting
the cities with high-speed rails becomes easier. Additionally, the high-speed
rails are widely accepted by the public because they are easily accessible in the
large cities, which makes them convenient to use for daily commutes. In turn, this success encourages more passengers to ride, and has led to a sharp increase in the number of train passengers in Europe. The consequence is fewer people driving, which equates to fewer traffic jams, less fuel consumption and less CO2 emissions.
The drawback of the United States is that the cities are
very spread out. This is known as “urbansprawl.” It is one of the main issues standing in the way of bringing
high-speed rails to the US. According to
Demographia, U.S. has almost one of third the urban density of Europe, which makes it challenging to build high-speed rails that are
accessible to a large number of U.S. citizens. In addition, building the
infrastructure for these high-speed rails (i.e., building the tracks) would be a
huge initial investment; it is estimated
to be between $65 and $81 billion. As Samer Madanat puts it: “it will be the largest infrastructure transportation
project in the U.S. since the Interstate was constructed.” It has been
suggested that the U.S. just uses the railroad tracks that are already built;
however, this would create other problems. For example, if we don’t upgrade to
the high-speed rail tracks, we won’t be able to reach top speeds. Moreover, the
U.S. has one of the best freight railways in the world. If we start converting these tracks into passenger
lines, there will be fewer ways to haul freight. The final, major concern is whether
or not people will use the high-speed rails if they are built. The reason high-speed
rails are so successful in Europe is because so many people use them daily.
However, in the United States, this would require a change in lifestyle, and
that kind of change will not happen overnight. In order for the high-speed rail
to be equally successful in the U.S., they need to be easily accessible by a
large number of people that are willing to use them regularly.
Overall, high-speed rails are a great solution to transportation
problems; however, it’s just not realistic for the U.S. The population
of the U.S. is too spread out and the number of possible passengers is unreliable. Furthermore,
it would require an initial investment that might be out of the reach of the United States.
I thought this was a good post. It is interesting to see how a technology that has thrived in one region could be very poorly suited for another. I thought you did a great job of highlighting both the positives and negatives of the issue.
ReplyDeleteNice job on discussing what could hinder the development of a high-speed rail network in the US; I would definitely agree that culture would prevent many people from even considering taking the train. Do you think that there are some places that could be ready for a high-speed rail in the US, like connecting Washington DC to Boston to New York?
ReplyDeletePeople have looked at making high speed trains that are localized to specific areas in the U.S. and that seems slightly more plausible. It would still be dependent on how many people use them though. Additionally, we run into the concern that if it's a shorter distance, high-speed wouldn't be as necessary. In which case, we could just add regular trains at a lower cost.
DeleteI think your article covers a really interesting topic that hasn't been looked at very much here in the U.S. I know it doesn't look like high speed rails would be very practical in the U.S. but it still surprises me that we haven't tried. You do bring up a really good point in that American people probably wouldn't be very open to the idea for a while. It will be interesting to see if they do make it here someday.
ReplyDeleteYour article is constructed very well and covers an interesting topic. I like how you point out the reasons that the high-speed rails work in Europe and then contrast those reasons with the U.S. Your explanations of cost, population density, and demand from the public really drive it home as to why high-speed rails are not justifiable in the U.S. Great job.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your use of pictures how they are complimentary not central to your post. I also enjoy your views of the railways. Doesn't Japan have the fastest train? Either way. Good explanation of the difference between maglev and conventional high speed trains.
ReplyDeleteJapan does hold the record. Both Japan and China have made some important breakthroughs in this area.
DeleteGreat post!!! I am from Europe and I think that High-speed rails are great but like you point out the population in the United States is more spread out, unlike in Europe we are a lot more close toguether..after all they might not be that great for the US but I think that they would be very useful in big cities.
ReplyDelete