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Page added on February 16, 2013
Map Shows What US-Wide High Speed Rail Might Look Like
California Rail Map/CC BY-SA 3.0
We Can Dream, Can’t We?
Alfred Twu, a high-speed rail activist and mapmaker, has created the map above, showing what a cross-country high-speed rail network might look like in the United States. Mr. Twu describes his map-making process this way:
Having worked on getting California’s high speed rail approved in the 2008 elections, I’ve long sung the economic and environmental benefits of fast trains.
This latest map comes more from the heart. It speaks more to bridging regional and urban-rural divides than about reducing airport congestion or even creating jobs, although it would likely do that as well.
Instead of detailing construction phases and service speeds, I took a little artistic license and chose colors and linked lines to celebrate America’s many distinct but interwoven regional cultures. (source)
You can see a high-resolution version of the map here, and there’s a PDF version here.
Compare it with what is currently being planned in the US, according to the Federal Railroad Administration:
FRA/Public Domain
Of course, it’s easier and cheaper to dream up maps than to build an actual high-speed rail network, and there are arguments against building high speed passenger rail in areas of low population density (if you’re going to build something, it might sometimes make more sense to beef up cargo rail, since a lot more goods can be stacked up in a train than passengers), but the current US rail system is definitely inadequate and needs massive investment.
Via California Rail Map, Federal Railroad Administration, FastCompany
7 Comments on "Map Shows What US-Wide High Speed Rail Might Look Like"
BillT on Sat, 16th Feb 2013 1:49 pm
Being planned and actually happening are worlds apart in today’s economy. It’s more likely that there will be no new high speed anything unless you consider collapse as a high speed event. The time to have done this was decades ago. High speed rail is not new, but it is competition for airlines (taxpayer subsidized) and even auto sales (taxpayer subsidized). Not to mention oil companies (taxpayer subsidized).
Anything taking multi-billions or trillions of dollars and years, is not going to happen. The Fed is already burning up the keyboard ‘printing’ billions and trillions of dollars to keep it all going. And China is working to destroy the dollar as the world’s reserve currency. The race is on…
Beery on Sat, 16th Feb 2013 1:51 pm
We can dream, but anyone who thinks they’ll see the first map become a reality in our lifetimes is in fantasyland. I’ll be surprised if we see a high speed rail link between New York and DC in the next 50 years.
Plantagenet on Sat, 16th Feb 2013 5:23 pm
Obama wasted a trillion dollars on his failed stimulus. Imagine if instead of wasting the money on Solyndra, A123, the bad Karma and other failed idea of his political cronies, Obama had used the money to reindustrialize the USA and build the high speed rail network to get the USA ready for the post-oil future.
GregT on Sat, 16th Feb 2013 5:40 pm
We have evolved from localization, to regionalization, to nationalization, to globalization. As oil becomes more expensive, and less abundant, I suspect that this evolutionary process will be reversed.
Just as rail opened up the continent, it will most likely be the last form of mass transport available. I doubt very much that people will be very concerned about which speed that it runs at.
Kenz300 on Sat, 16th Feb 2013 7:08 pm
Mass transit is more efficient than using the automobile or planes.
We need to develop more mass transit options for commuting in towns and between towns and states.
It is time to let the past go and begin to look to the future.
Walk a little more, ride a bicycle a little more and for longer distances use mass transit.
rollin on Sun, 17th Feb 2013 1:08 am
Sadly we cannot even build 80 miles of needed normal speed passenger rail in my area. Been planned for 25 years and had enviro studies completed, no real progress. If they can’t build local commuter trackage, how can they build high speed rail? China can, but China has money.
With new generation low fuel use aircraft coming out soon,I doubt if investment in all that costly passenger rail high speed infrastructure will happen. Much cheaper to just build better planes, no new infrastructure required.
Kenz300 on Sun, 17th Feb 2013 7:01 pm
In the 1950’s only the wealthy could afford to fly.
That will happen again as the price of oil continues to rise.
Yes the newer planes are more fuel efficient but only 10 or 20% more fuel efficient at most. The cost of fuel will dictate ticket prices and they are both going up.