Amtrak celebrates

[Barton Keyes]

Amtrak is celebrating its 40th anniversary with a boost in popularity and is set to carry over 30 million passengers this year for the first time ever, beating last year's previous record. The recent surge in fuel prices has made rail travel a more attractive option for Americans squeezed by the economic downturn. Fortunately the current administration, with 'Amtrak Joe' Biden as VP, recognises the importance and pent up demand for a properly funded rail system.

 

[Wyvern]

Yet it seems elsewhere the Americans are going through the same anguish we are - High speed railway, yes or no?

NEW YORK TIMES: Fast Train to Nowhere

 

[exile]

Given the budget crisis, I can't see any major new rail projects for years.

 

[Barton Keyes]

I've read Richard White's book, which is a well-researched account of the buccaneering days of American railroad building. He makes good points about the wastefulness and sometimes downright criminality of many tycoons but his analysis is perhaps too ready to dismiss the advantages that railroads brought. I tend to agree with him about most modern high-speed rail projects though. Surely greater capacity and better quality of service are more important?

 

[b0b]

Given the budget crisis, I can't see any major new rail projects for years.

I don't know about that - there's constant fighting about "unfair" $100 billion/year cuts. This whole project is only a total of $54 billion.

Now whether the lines are justifiable where they are going, well that's a fair debate, but government puts lines where it gets votes. Sometimes that matches up with passenger demand.

eg. why do you think "swing state" Florida, without a history of any sort of rail service was to get much more funding vs "safe" Illinios, where the commuter rail system has a 23% share of the market to downtown Chicago?

 

[WatcherZero]

I heard that Amtraks passenger numbers fell as low as 15m from highs of 30m three decades ago so its good to hear their starting to recover.