California's High Speed Rail Future

Anyone who has ever traveled around Europe, Japan, or increasingly China, has seen the dependence that passengers have on long rail networks. Railways in the U.S. are almost completely dominated by freight transportation; travelers utilize a small proportion of our network. Many millions of Americans use subways and regional, or municipal, transit; but there is very little infrastructure to travel long distances.

Many experts and industry insiders believe that the United States will have to embrace a future on the rails if it hopes to cope with obstacles and changes in years ahead. By and large our dependence on gas-powered vehicles has proven to be both hazardous to our environment and disastrous for our wallet.

Our nation may never completely break its addictive bond with automobiles, but it could potentially lessen the burden by rebuilding passenger rail systems that have long been an afterthought.

One of the first areas where the U.S. may see a foray into the realm of rail transit is an ongoing program in California.

According to CNN, the proposed Los Angeles – San Francisco route will have one of the fastest trains in the world. Travel time is projected at around two and a half hours; much faster than the 6-7 hour drive without any traffic backups. Even if ticket prices for the new train system are far above the estimated $55 round trip, the train will be cheaper and faster than anything offered by traditional automobiles or even regional airline flights.

There is still a lot of debate as to whether or not the train will deliver its promises. The federal government is pumping more than $2 billion into the train program, but that will not cover all of its costs. As pointed out by an exposé in The Los Angeles Times, the cost curves for the initial track have increased immensely, and ticket price projections are going up.

Also, as is the case with all government spending programs, as more money flows in more people want to get a hand on the action. A train that stops in Los Angeles and San Francisco could reach top speeds well above 200 miles per hour and be a true beacon for future transport.

Unfortunately more and more communities are latching on to the program. If the train is going to pass through their backyard, they want it to stop there as well and boost the local economy. As a result, the train will have less time to speed up, make more stops, and lengthen the duration of the trip to the point of making it inefficient.

Car companies are against the plan because it will encourage people to give up their personal automobiles. Airlines are against the plan because they have fought hard for their monopoly on certain service routes. Many energy companies have opposed plans around the U.S. because of a push to power the trains with alternative energy as opposed to oil and coal.

Obviously, high-speed rail has a tough hill to climb in the fight for viability, but the rewards are worth the risks. All across Europe the same concerns were voiced about cost projections, ridership, access, routes, energy and production.

Now, the opposition voices are completely drowned out by happy passengers and a bustling domestic industry. Spain has become a world leader in transportation innovation after installing hundreds of miles of high-speed rail and encouraging Spanish companies to bid on its contracts. A nation that had not been a factor in the European or global economy in centuries is now a leader in many transportation sectors.

There are no perfect solutions, but America has to take a proactive stance against the problems we face. Our use of cars as a primary mode of transportation is harmful to the economy and destructive to the environment.

Air and auto travel has become congested and expensive. Offering a third option, passenger rail, would alleviate congestion stress and expedite travel.

It would make automobile and airline industries strive for innovation rather than fight to entrench the status quo.

It would offer thousands of new jobs in research, design, engineering and construction. Most importantly, it would show that America has a plan for its future. Even if passenger rail is truly impossible in this country, and most indications show that it is definitely not, a nation in crisis must sometimes take calculated risks to stay ahead.