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I never understood why we never went anywhere on the trains. Cargo makes more money than people transport and most people preferred air; and short range rail i
by protomyth 7y ago
I never understood why we never went anywhere on the trains.
Cargo makes more money than people transport and most people preferred air; and short range rail is very expensive due to all the legal barriers.
We have an amazing rail system in the USA, it's just not about people transport. It, along with barge and truck, make the modern US possible.
- wool_gather 7y agoYes; the tracks are owned (or maybe just operated) in a lot of places by the freight rail companies. This is a bit of a tangent, but one of the most frustrating things about riding the passenger rail (I've experienced this most going through upstate New York) is being slightly behind schedule, and then falling far, far behind schedule by having to wait for a freight train using the same stretch of track to pass. As I understand it, passenger trains are always supposed to be given priority. But in practice it never seems to work out that way. The dispatcher or whoever's making the decision often prioritizes the freight.
- protomyth 7y agoBecause, depending on what the schedule the freight is on and the terms, it can cost a lot of cash if the train is late. There are a lot of moving parts with freight, so passengers are no where near the priority.