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Large trucks also destroy roads at a far faster rate then they trains destroy tracks. Trucks need specific drivers to, they can strike too. The reason its harde

Large trucks also destroy roads at a far faster rate then they trains destroy tracks. Trucks need specific drivers to, they can strike too. The reason its harder is because there are more companies, the same could be done for rail, the system as it exists now in the US as compared to most of the world. The reason trucking is so successful is that the government spends an absolutely huge amount of money on roads from highways to local roads, in what amounts to a absolutely gigantic subsidy. Trains on the other hand are incredibly profitable industry running on decaying infrastructure (that was once funded with government grants).

robertlagrant 4y ago
I don't really see the distinction you're drawing between government subsidized roads and government subsidised tracks. And the difference is that roads are useful for everything, driven by anyone. I can't go on strike and stop myself from driving somewhere.
- panick21_ 4y ago
  Trains in most nations are useful for everybody. And they are far more energy efficient, better for air quality and most importantly more space efficient. So when analysis what a government should invest in, it makes sense to invest in trains. I know that you can go everywhere with your car, but what if I told you not every single person had a car. I know, I know for Americans this is very hard to understand that such a thing is possible. Roads aren't for everybody, roads are for people that can afford cars. And roads still need to be designed far larger if you also use them for cargo, and because trucks are so heavy the need to be fix these roads very often otherwise they will lose utility for everybody. And I don't understand the obsession with strikes that Americans seem to have. As if everywhere outside of the US nobody would ever get anywhere because everybody was always striking.
  - robertlagrant 4y ago
    Why are you talking about Americans? Trains are an optimisation for where there's enough utility to cope with the massive overhead they impose. That's how they're more efficient: they are only built where there's so much demand that it's worth putting a train there. They aren't general-purpose, and they need a lot of top-down control to make happen. They aren't like roads, where you can run a bus service, ride a bike, or hop in a car and go.
  - robertlagrant 4y ago
    Why are you talking about Americans? Trains are an optimisation for where there's enough utility to cope with the massive overhead they impose. That's how they're more efficient: they are only built where there's so much demand that it's worth putting a train there. They aren't general-purpose, and they need a lot of top-down control to make happen. They aren't like roads, where you can run a private bus service, ride a bike, or hop in a car and go.
    - panick21_ 4y ago
      > Why are you talking about Americans? Because its generally Americans who think its unfathomable to connect anything other then Tokio and Osaka by train. We have villages with a few 100 people connected by train. You can transport bikes, cars, and cargo or people on a train. Just hop on. And building a train isn't much more top down then building a general road. Many train companies historically have run locally with local control. And in rural places there is often a public owned bus running on the publicly owned road. > hop in a car and go. .... If you own a car.

robertlagrant 4y ago

I don't really see the distinction you're drawing between government subsidized roads and government subsidised tracks. And the difference is that roads are useful for everything, driven by anyone. I can't go on strike and stop myself from driving somewhere.

panick21_ 4y ago
Trains in most nations are useful for everybody. And they are far more energy efficient, better for air quality and most importantly more space efficient. So when analysis what a government should invest in, it makes sense to invest in trains. I know that you can go everywhere with your car, but what if I told you not every single person had a car. I know, I know for Americans this is very hard to understand that such a thing is possible. Roads aren't for everybody, roads are for people that can afford cars. And roads still need to be designed far larger if you also use them for cargo, and because trucks are so heavy the need to be fix these roads very often otherwise they will lose utility for everybody. And I don't understand the obsession with strikes that Americans seem to have. As if everywhere outside of the US nobody would ever get anywhere because everybody was always striking.
- robertlagrant 4y ago
  Why are you talking about Americans? Trains are an optimisation for where there's enough utility to cope with the massive overhead they impose. That's how they're more efficient: they are only built where there's so much demand that it's worth putting a train there. They aren't general-purpose, and they need a lot of top-down control to make happen. They aren't like roads, where you can run a bus service, ride a bike, or hop in a car and go.
- robertlagrant 4y ago
  Why are you talking about Americans? Trains are an optimisation for where there's enough utility to cope with the massive overhead they impose. That's how they're more efficient: they are only built where there's so much demand that it's worth putting a train there. They aren't general-purpose, and they need a lot of top-down control to make happen. They aren't like roads, where you can run a private bus service, ride a bike, or hop in a car and go.
  - panick21_ 4y ago
    > Why are you talking about Americans? Because its generally Americans who think its unfathomable to connect anything other then Tokio and Osaka by train. We have villages with a few 100 people connected by train. You can transport bikes, cars, and cargo or people on a train. Just hop on. And building a train isn't much more top down then building a general road. Many train companies historically have run locally with local control. And in rural places there is often a public owned bus running on the publicly owned road. > hop in a car and go. .... If you own a car.