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Or any bullet train for that matter... The French and Japanese have had a friendly rivalry for decades. But both like the Chinese are willing to dedicate right
by technofiend 7y ago
Or any bullet train for that matter... The French and Japanese have had a friendly rivalry for decades. But both like the Chinese are willing to dedicate right of way for high speed trains. The American system's shared lines for passenger and freight traffic creates limitations the other systems do not share.
- ceejayoz 7y agoSwitzerland has shared lines, but the freight traffic is required to be able to go at the same speed as the passenger trains. They have shorter trains with more engines than you'd see in the US as a result.
- rolltiide 7y agoThe passenger trains are really fast so its not really a compromise there
- ceejayoz 7y agoRight, that's the point - a dual system can be made entirely workable. You just can't let the freight railroads set the rules like they have here in the US.
- chrisseaton 7y agoI don't know if it's just where I happen to see them (near inhabited areas), but US freight trains seem to literally move at walking pace. Ringing the bell the entire time while they do it.
- jdsully 7y agoThey can get up to 50-60mph but only outside of built up areas with long straight track (e.g. in the Great Planes). They mostly go slow for fuel efficiency (it takes a lot of power and distance to build up speed). Here's one going 70mph in Texas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMhSRP7RBpo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMhSRP7RBpo
- askvictor 7y agoSwitzerland is also tiny, making travel time less of a concern.
- pjc50 7y agoThe UK system also has shared lines, but prioritize passengers and has a severe capacity problem.