To advocates of high speed passenger rail service.

[MicaelS]

How do you plan to acquire the land for dedicated high speed passenger rail service?

You cannot mix high-speed passenger trains wiith freight trains on the same track, UNLESS you are running multiple main lines (minimum 4-6) as in the Northeast corridor.

High speed passenger rail requires:

Heavier rail.
Different curve geometry.
Elimination of ALL crossings, which mean over/underpasses everywhere.

Do not get me wrong, I would love to see high-speed rail in places like the Texas Triangle, and other places, but it requires all new track, with all the problems that entail.

The RRs have no incentive to upgrade. They have abandoned thousands of miles of track, because it does not fit their current model of unit trains (no switching and 2 person crews). They ran off the small businesses and towns that they used to serve. Just like airlines have abandoned smaller cities. They do not want, nor will they accept passenger trains on their track without billions in subsidies.

Are you going to eminent domain hundreds of miles of land needed for new dedicated rail? How will that work with people?

How do you plan to aquire the land, deal with all the NIMBYs, environmental and State and local regulations? What about the takings clause?

I love the idea of high speed rail for didtances under 300 miles, BUT how can we do that?

I am not engaging in hyperbole or sarcasm, I am asking a serious questions.

[GitRDun]

1. I Advocate

Re imagining the Interstate highway system.

Rail below

High speed Internet and power below

Road at surface

[mitch96]

15. acquire the land for dedicated high speed passenger rail service?

I was thinking elevated tracks in the median of the interstate highway system.. Down here in Fla the Fla turnpike has a nice wide median between the two roadways. Same with I95.. Nice and straight with gentile curves.. No cross traffic to slow down the system accept for begin and end stops... The bases have to be nice and strong.. People drive crazy down here and cross the median........
m

[Johnny2X2X]

2. You answered yourself

"They have abandoned thousands of miles of track, because it does not fit their current model of unit trains (no switching and 2 person crews)."

This land already has rails on it, can be purchased from the railways, and then the new rails can be built on them.

[MicaelS]

7. No.

That land has almost always repurposed for hiking, biking, jogging, etc.

[Wellstone ruled]

3. Hope everyone reads your post,

as someone who in the past was associated with ad-hoc committee advising as to a Light Rail System,everything you mention is true. Land purchasing is a nightmare. All it takes is one person to demand some really outrageous price and then the Courts get involved then all bets are off. Do remember one parcel costing several million for a parcel that for tax purposes valued at a few thousands.

Again,if you thing Union Pacific or BNSF is going to allow any new Passenger Rail on their Tracks,well it ain't going to happen. Learned that first hand from the North Star Project.

[loyalsister]

4. Elevated and underground possibilities?

I have limited knowledge, but I know that they are both used for transit system trains. Fort Collins has a system where they have dedicated roadway lanes for buses. There's also quite a bit of county and state owned land in sparsely populated areas across the US. I 70 in Missouri runs between STL and KC along 100s of miles of unpopulated or barely populated regions.

[alwaysinasnit]

5. You have highlighted a whole host of factors/issues that need to be considered in projects like

this. As much as I like the idea of high speed passenger rail service, I understand there is a lot of stuff that I and many other people can't grasp because we are not familiar with what-all goes into making this stuff work. Thanks for posting.

[DFW]

6. It would probably be one of the most--if not THE most expensive undertakings we ever did

And by far the most important and useful (long term) to over a hundred million Americans--which is probably a deal-breaker in itself.

[brooklynite]

8. Market purchase or eminent domain

If you believe that's an issue, you're basically saying that no further infrastructure of any sort can be built.

European and Asian nations have solved this problem.

[msongs]

10. china just puts opponents in concentration camps. nt

[brooklynite]

13. Not always...

[MyNameGoesHere]

9. I don't know

We used to build stuff, now we just whine about it.
I'll probably move to a first world country if I really want to experience high speed rail, science, technology, freedom.

[jmowreader]

11. How about this...

Run it elevated down the medians of interstate highways.

[royable]

12. How was high speed rail installed all over Europe? Japan? China?

I know, different governments, but surely there are things to be learned from what has been accomplished already.

[NewJeffCT]

14. China does not have eminent domain

I've been there several times as my wife has relatives there.

The first time I went there, I saw all these banners draped across the street - almost like you see in the movie or on TV - WELCOME TO the XYZ COUNTY FAIR - or something like that (MUSIC FESTIVAL, etc). Of course, in Chinese.

So, I asked my wife what they said - and, she said it was a warning from the government to be out of these buildings by the end of the year because the Government is going to build something else there. (It was September at the time)

In Europe, I would guess that much of the rail infrastructure was already in place before there were too many concerns about environmental issues and seizing lands that is privately owned. No idea where they are on Eminent Domain.