What is the reason behind this thought? I know that most people think like this. Train should be cheaper than air. I guess it has to do with planes replacing p

What is the reason behind this thought? I know that most people think like this. Train should be cheaper than air. I guess it has to do with planes replacing plane, hence plane must be better, hence more expensive. But the reality is that the plane won because of two things: speed and cost. Air is free. Miles of miles of railroad is very expensive to build and maintain. Trains are a bit cheaper than planes. But they travel slowly. So cost per mile per passenger is lower for a plane. Even when subsidized, the cost of rail travel is often more expensive per mile than air travel. So when Europe and Asia now are building a lot of high speed rail, it's not to make it cheaper, but to lower carbon footprint and to make a more pleasant experience.