The United States has lagged behind in the creation of a truly high speed rail network. Acela is more expensive and slower than similar counterparts in France and China. Of course, it is also much smaller in scope. The decline of rail transport in the United States has many historical causes, certainly the creation of the auto industry and the Interstate Highway System and the rise of air travel for longer trips. However, the United States at one time had the world’s largest passenger rail network. The railroads in New York connected to the entire country, and in the densely populated Northeast this could once again be the case with high speed railroads that could easily beat the total travel time of airplanes on medium-haul routes. With truly high speed trains even routes to parts of the South and the Midwest are possible from New York with total door to door travel times faster than airplanes. Connecting New York State though is a priority that should be high on the list of infrastructure objectives for the legislature. This is a project that would have immediate commercial success as New Yorkers already use the train to travel between Upstate and New York City. The train would also be a clearly superior alternative to either a bus or driving on these routes and a connection to Canada’s largest cities of Toronto and Montreal would be possible on a future expansion, greatly expanding the passenger base of a New York high speed rail system. New York State should move itself even without support from the Federal government for such a project. The ancillary benefits of this project would be massive and they could create jobs, improve the climate, and spread out the demand for housing all at the same time. Few things New York would invest in could have such a powerful economic multiplier effect.
Menu