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High Speed
Dunan Black (Atrios), Eschaton
While Supertrains which are truly SUPER would be great, I think there’s a bit too much focus on top speed. If you can get average speeds on routes to be reliably around 90-100 miles that’s pretty damn good. Faster would be better, of course, but 100 mph average still makes rail and awesome option for many routes.
…adding, the issue is that in many places marginal improvements of existing infrastructure (track repairs, additional tracks on existing right-of-ways, electrification of non-electrified routes, etc.) can do a lot to get rid of the bottlenecks and congestion/competition with freight rail which limits achievable average seed. Real high speed rail will require all new infrastructure, essentially. That isn’t to say I’m against the latter, but to the extent that a decent financial commitment to rail infrastructure can greatly improve service quality on existing infrastructure it’s worth pursuing too.
(17 June 2009)
Echoes James Howard Kunstler’s recent post (Too Stupid To Survive):
the additional sad truth, at this point, is that Californians (and US public in general) would benefit tremendously from normal rail service on a par with the standards of 1927, when speeds of 100 miles-per-hour were common and the trains ran absolutely on time (and frequently, too) without computers (imagine that !). The tracks are still there, waiting to be fixed. In our current condition of psychotic techno-grandiosity, this is all too hopelessly quaint, not cutting edge enough, pathetically un-“hot.”
UK air passenger numbers slump as recession bites
Dan Milmo, Guardian
The recession has grounded millions of airline passengers, the Civil Aviation Authority said today, with figures showing a 13% drop in the number of people using UK airports.
Transatlantic travel is the biggest victim of the downturn, with numbers falling by 15% as the near-collapse of the banking industry hit traffic and the weak pound deterred tourists.
… Environmental campaigners said the firgures bolstered the argument against airport expansion.
The planned opening date for a second runway at Stansted has been pushed back to 2017 after the airport operator BAA admitted the Essex airport would not attract the necessary 35 million passengers a year until well into the next decade.
Last year, the number of passengers passing through British airports fell for the first time since 1991 and, if the first quarter trend continues, is heading for its first decline in successive years since the second world war.
(16 June 2009)
Lord Adonis sees demise of short flights
Steven Swinford, The Times
THE new transport secretary, Lord Adonis, believes a 200mph high-speed rail network in Britain will spell the end for domestic flights and short flights to Europe.
In his first interview since joining the cabinet, Adonis said the market for internal flights would collapse within the next 20 years as the train becomes the preferred mode of travel.
The proposed high-speed rail network would cut journey times from London to Manchester to 1hr 22min and Glasgow to 2hr 42min. Adonis envisages that it could use French-style TGV trains.
He said high-speed rail would also replace flights from Britain to destinations including Amsterdam, Brussels, Cologne, Lyon and Rotterdam. He believes the rise of high-speed rail will help to cut carbon emissions and offer passengers more comfortable and enjoyable journeys than travelling by plane…
(21 June 2009)
