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I always get a little sad when I go looking for things like this. Today it costs a billion dollars per mile to build rapid transit, and yet there are cities wh

I always get a little sad when I go looking for things like this. Today it costs a billion dollars per mile to build rapid transit, and yet there are cities where they just tore up their rapid transit system. My favorite is probably a branch off the Green Line in Chicago. You can start here: https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8220133,-87.6169737,3a,60y,258.95h,79.43t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sDBC4f5RaG0zkY5Vgne1vrA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192 https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8220133,-87.6169737,3a,60y,2... and zoom out and follow the entire route. A transit desert with lots of space for development, that way because the rapid transit route got torn up. (Info about this particular line: https://www.chicago-l.org/operations/lines/kenwood.html https://www.chicago-l.org/operations/lines/kenwood.html There are a lot of them in Chicago.)

cheschire 5y ago
With the changes in rail technology, and the effects of weather, would disused lines not have required a complete replacement anyways?
- jrockway 5y ago
  Much of the system dates from the same era and handles 2000s era passenger loads. But yes, deferred maintenance has its cost; a coat of paint prevents the superstructure from rusting away, once that paint is gone and the superstructure has rusted, then it has to be replaced entirely. That was the sticking point for this particular branch. It needed money in an era where trains were boring and the glorious automobile was our savior, so wasn't going to get any money. It turned out that was not the best long term solution, and that's the sad part. People were onto something with this whole "streetcar suburb" and dense ubran rapid transit system. But, it hit some rough patches, and here we are today. (Overrun by cars and their pollution, but without a transit system that would let people get rid of their car.)

cheschire 5y ago

With the changes in rail technology, and the effects of weather, would disused lines not have required a complete replacement anyways?

jrockway 5y ago
Much of the system dates from the same era and handles 2000s era passenger loads. But yes, deferred maintenance has its cost; a coat of paint prevents the superstructure from rusting away, once that paint is gone and the superstructure has rusted, then it has to be replaced entirely. That was the sticking point for this particular branch. It needed money in an era where trains were boring and the glorious automobile was our savior, so wasn't going to get any money. It turned out that was not the best long term solution, and that's the sad part. People were onto something with this whole "streetcar suburb" and dense ubran rapid transit system. But, it hit some rough patches, and here we are today. (Overrun by cars and their pollution, but without a transit system that would let people get rid of their car.)