[emersonbiggins]

Kunstler said it. I believe it's in The Long Emergency and probably The Geography of Nowhere.

A simple statement, really. It implies that US' superiority in all things rail (passenger rail, that is) is subordinate to even the efforts of the smallest of countries and economies. Bulgaria was somewhat of an implied whipping boy for Kunstler, but the allusion was that even their network was presumed to be better than America's. Well, Bulgaria is now set to further pull away from America. Gee, this side of the expressway seems to be getting mighty lonely these days...

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', '[')b]Railway in Bulgaria: High Speed Rail Plans
Add: 08 May 2006

The Bulgarian cabinet approved on April 27 a draft agreement on the construction of a high-speed railway network in South East Europe. The document regulates co-operation among the countries in the region in railway transport and envisages the building of a prime-quality high-speed network of 16 railway lines for cargo and passenger transport. Five of them will run across Bulgaria, passing through Sofia, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, Varna, Bourgas, Gorna Oryahovitsa, Vidin and Rousse. The railway lines in South East Europe, the quality of which will high enough to be included in the high-speed network, as part of the Trans-European Network,... more at link

[Wildwell]

I think Russia and China are doing similar things

Took a ride from Brig to Bern (Switzerland) a few weeks back and looked down on this huge construction site. Didn't realise what it was until came across a few weeks ago, by accident, an article on the new 35km (22 mile) Lotschberg base tunnel, just short of the length of the channel tunnel. This in order to accommodate 300 trains a day on the already congestion classic route, subject to steep climbs through the alps..

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/ ... i_81625415

Meanwhile on the romantic Gotthard route down from Switzerland to Italy, they are building a 35 mile long tunnel, the world's longest for high speed freight and passenger traffic, this to accommodate mountains of pasta source, wine and olives coming up from Italy and German cars going the other way.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotthard_Base_Tunnel

I think the principal reason these are being built is to take heavy trucks off the alpine roads. And in any case during the winter rail based rolling highways operate as the road passes are under snow.

As Europe is more densely populated it helps with these schemes.

[holmes]

America is brain dead.
America IS the Buffalo and the Train.
Presently, America is a nuetered half wit.

[holmes]

we should be subsidizing the piss out of rail. Cut off the frail and hanging bellied automobile cult.

[PrairieMule]

EB-

http://admin.garcoschools.org/04-05/Fac ... DONALD.gif

Man, even in Bulgaria the McDonalds are way more over the top than us. I am ashamed..

[emersonbiggins]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('PrairieMule', 'E')B-

http://admin.garcoschools.org/04-05/Fac ... DONALD.gif

Man, even in Bulgaria the McDonalds are way more over the top than us. I am ashamed..