High Speed Rail

Japan, China, Germany, Spain, Italy… the U.S? While the first 5 countries have high speed rail systems, the U.S, the global superpower, does not have a single track. But why is this? Well, let’s explore a little. Starting with some background, the U.S. used to LOVE Rail. During the late…

Tell me how an economy less wealthy than ours builds a massive and successful rail system and we’re left with Amtrak — America is lagging behind many of the largest economies in the world when it comes to rail and public transportation. It is obvious to all impartial observers that public transportation and high-speed rail aren’t high priorities for many Americans. I largely attribute that to the marketing of the automotive industry…

The advent of smart cars can solve many problems, including an increase in traffic density for faster commutes, the promise of increased safety (due to better roadway decision making), and driver convenience. Electric and hydrogen cars promise cleaner energy, but rubber tire to road is still a relatively high-friction and…

Part 4? 5? in an ongoing series of what’s wrong with my adopted home. I promise I’ll write one about why I like it here soon. My wife and I went to San Francisco last week. Flew out of Burbank because LAX tests our marriage. Left the house at 6:30…

Over the past two years, countries across Europe have begun implementing bans on short-haul domestic flights in favor of high-speed rail to help reduce carbon emissions. Sadly, the US can’t participate. For more than 60 years, fossil fuel interests have sought to undermine any and all zero-carbon transportation planning. The…

Quicker trains for California Our friend Catherine went to San Francisco last weekend to see some friends. Like us, she lives in Ojai, awkwardly positioned between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles airports. Her travel options to get to the Bay Area were to drive — at least six hours if…

With the recent announcement by the Malaysian prime minister during his state visit to Thailand, the idea of connecting both Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok via high-speed rail infrastructure was mooted. Both governments mulled the notion of having KL-Bangkok high-speed railway route and have agreed to conduct a feasibility study. Many…

Within the next decade or two, construction will begin on a new High Speed Rail (HSR) system connecting the major cities of Cascadia (the cross-border region that spans British Columbia, Washington State, and Oregon). Currently, only the very most rudimentary studies have been completed (see the 2018 Feasibility Study, the…

Introduction There are so many types of transport. There are more to come up too!! Hyperloop is one of them. We all must be knowing about Bullet trains or High Speed Trains or Maglev. Hyper Loop is similar to these, but with a very different & smart concept. Bullet Trains are…