When Europeans visit the US, or even move here, and comment about how they think the US should build a railroad system like that of Europe they just don't realize how big the US is.
So I looked up a few numbers on it.
The US is big. Really big. The entire EU would fit in a smidge over half of the Continental US. The nation of France is about the same size as the State of Texas. Lincoln County, New Mexico, site of the infamous Lincoln County War, is about the same size as the nation of Ireland.
Further, the US is spread out. Across the Midwest and the West the US has a lot of nowhere. In the US today the population is heavily concentrated in a few population centers, notably along the East and West Coasts. The EU isn't nearly as spread out and stuffed into population centers. They have a lot of "continuous growth villages" across Europe, which hold a lot of their population. The EU has a population density of 300 people per square mile. The US just 94 per square mile.
Because of the distances between population centers involved in North America it just doesn't make economic sense to build such a system of long distance rail over here.
Now, there are areas in which light rail and high speed rail make a lot of sense. Tampa to Orlando and Miami, for instance. But for distances much longer than that the economics very much favor airlines.
Comments- Jay Ashworth Corner Chemist? Peanuts to the US?
- Robert Luis Rabello High speed rail connecting San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco would be a good idea. The same is true for the Washington - Boston corridor.
- Jay Ashworth Acela isn't fast enough for you?
- Alan Petrillo The real key, I think, is to hook up high speed rail directly to airports. Then passengers could take airplanes for the long distances where airplanes make more sense, and then high speed rail further on. Then there's that pesky last mile, which would have to be served by light rail and buses.
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