Texas to build bullet train route?

Texas geography seems like a good match for a bullet train if anywhere in the US is. But I question the timing b/c of the pandemic's effect on mass transit.
 
Will it have a special car for bikes? IĀ“d like more space for bikes on trains & buses like that in the Netherlands.
Here the Ā“pandemicĀ“ has boosted mass transit use. Park & ride lots have been much fuller of late. Unfortunately,
in recent weeks those long cloistered by C-19 are breaking out & travelling now. Traffic on hwys 20 & 19 has
doubled if not trebled. This is not helping with climate issues! Having driven less than 500 mi. last year IĀ“m
really keen to travel too, but crowded hwys & gas prices puts a big damper on that notion. My acoustic bus bike
is ready, but still not as much fun as electric. The local buses are for now free & were really cheap even before.
 
They were going to build a high speed train system in Florida a few years back but it all fell through. Would have been a great service :(
 
Texas may be the best bet, however Guys" most of the US looks at bike transport or use as a joke for two reasons.
1. The distances involved and layout of urban areas
2. Lets face it ,a lot of Americans would sooner ride the 4x4 to "Mickey D's" than walk or cycle.
I honestly feel that the next decade for America is going to bring about great changes( not always good or to our liking) I am hoping I can afford my next vehicle to be electric. Google failed Me, I was going to post a link to "Planetrain", similar to Musk's Hyperloop( probably conceived before Elon was born) couldn't find it.
We always hear about 'seismic" concerns when a project like "HSR' is conceived, funny thing is the "Godzilla" of earthquakes( Japan) has miles and miles of "HSR" heard about the "Bullet train." when I was in Elementary school.
 
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It's going to be a rocky road, but California, Texas, an the Northeast Corridor will get HSR. Probably 10-20 years before there are truly useful operational systems. Texas may be the first (not counting the existing acela services or the very limited utility first phase in CA)

These things need to be understood separately from urban mass transit as a very important part of addressing global greenhouse gas emissions.
 
I wish we had passenger line from south texas to San Antoni. i would take that rather than drive. Add San Antonio to Houston line would be nice too.
 
High speed rail compare to regional airtravel . Fuel burning and emissions per person mile traveled should tell us most of what matters.
 
john peck said:
Will it have a special car for bikes? IĀ“d like more space for bikes on trains & buses like that in the Netherlands.
Here the Ā“pandemicĀ“ has boosted mass transit use. Park & ride lots have been much fuller of late. Unfortunately,
in recent weeks those long cloistered by C-19 are breaking out & travelling now. Traffic on hwys 20 & 19 has
doubled if not trebled. This is not helping with climate issues! Having driven less than 500 mi. last year IĀ“m
really keen to travel too, but crowded hwys & gas prices puts a big damper on that notion. My acoustic bus bike
is ready, but still not as much fun as electric. The local buses are for now free & were really cheap even before.
Click to expand...
The vaccine is out now and most people have access to it. However, there was a lot of speculation that people crowded together on the subways was one of the reasons Covid 19 spread so quickly in New York City.
 
In the east where congested populations might make bullet trains untenable just improving existing infrastructure could up speeds considerablyā€¦and get back to the speeds of yesteryear
 
RunForTheHills said:
The vaccine is out now and most people have access to it. However, there was a lot of speculation that people crowded together on the subways was one of the reasons Covid 19 spread so quickly in New York City.
Click to expand...

speculation is the word.

there are conflicting studies to be sure, but many many of them show very low risk of transmission between masked patrons on mass transit. there's also the example of so many extremely dense transit-dependent cities around the world which had limited spread, so it's not so simple.

in the long run, transportation by private automobile - electric or not - is unsustainable from an energy, space, and social standpoint. the future will be a mix of various types of electric mass transit, electric cars and rideshares, and personal electric vehicles like bikes and scooters.
 
RunForTheHills said:
The vaccine is out now and most people have access to it. However, there was a lot of speculation that people crowded together on the subways was one of the reasons Covid 19 spread so quickly in New York City.
Click to expand...
Absolutely! If one receives the odd droplet occasionally over a period of time, the immune system has
time to mount a defense. If you are a NYC subway worker getting massive exposure in the course of
a day, itĀ“s gonna take you down fast.
 
But the same disease risk exists on planes, boats, or busses. So HSR is not any worse that way, but if all regional travel is down (and stays down a while) maybe there won't be enough demand to support another carrier. Do they have high speed trains haul freight too or just people?
 
Art Deco said:
But the same disease risk exists on planes, boats, or busses. So HSR is not any worse that way, but if all regional travel is down (and stays down a while) maybe there won't be enough demand to support another carrier. Do they have high speed trains haul freight too or just people?
Click to expand...
That is true, and the high speed train would probably not be as packed with people as a subway. I have traveled by air many times in the last year for work and never felt uncomfortable doing so. I mean the mask was uncomfortable, but the risk of getting sick wasn't.
 
Mulezen said:
In the east where congested populations might make bullet trains untenable just improving existing infrastructure could up speeds considerablyā€¦and get back to the speeds of yesteryear
Click to expand...
Absolutely true here with freight. The trains I see are barely moving at a fast walk. Maybe b/c the tracks are so bad.
 
Art Deco said:
Absolutely true here with freight. The trains I see are barely moving at a fast walk. Maybe b/c the tracks are so bad.
Click to expand...
Thats a fact, do not linger near a train thats "pumping"( RR Guys can tell you what that means)
 
mschwett said:
speculation is the word.

there are conflicting studies to be sure, but many many of them show very low risk of transmission between masked patrons on mass transit. there's also the example of so many extremely dense transit-dependent cities around the world which had limited spread, so it's not so simple.

in the long run, transportation by private automobile - electric or not - is unsustainable from an energy, space, and social standpoint. the future will be a mix of various types of electric mass transit, electric cars and rideshares, and personal electric vehicles like bikes and scooters.
Click to expand...
Before the Covid thing, I did think that electric auto-piloted rideshares would be a thing in major cities and maybe the suburbs. There was definitely a push by Uber and others to develop the technology. Now it seems that remote work is going to be with us for a little while longer, so there is less pressure to improve our transportation systems. Many large businesses that I work with are closing satellite offices across the country, including in states that have fully re-opened.
 
RunForTheHills said:
That is true, and the high speed train would probably not be as packed with people as a subway. I have traveled by air many times in the last year for work and never felt uncomfortable doing so. I mean the mask was uncomfortable, but the risk of getting sick wasn't.
Click to expand...
nor as packed with people as a plane, nor as energy intensive to provide fresh air (being at regular altitude and temperature.)

the DoD study on COVID transmission on planes is a good reference. Modern trains would be much lower risk, aside from longer trip durations.
 
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