Passenger trains: our hope for a more sustainable future

[nxylas]

From Common Dreams:

http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/09/19-3

[marmar]

1. It really is a miracle Amtrak has lasted....given all the anti-Amtrak legislators.

Good piece.

[nxylas]

2. It must be God's will

At least that's what I'm going to start telling Republican fundies. It's sure to confuse them, given that most of them think public transportation is a socialist plot.

[txlibdem]

3. Seriously. What a train system we could have if passenger rail got subsidized like airports do

Man, oh man.

I happen to prefer a variant called Personal Rapid Transit, which uses small cars suitable for 1 to 4 people and picks you up at your starting point and drops you off at your destination. The vehicles are smaller and lighter so the track is much much cheaper per mile. There can be as many stations as you like and they do not slow down others because the stations are off line, so a car destined to stop at a particular station takes an exit track and then slows down to stop at that station, while other cars whose destinations are farther down the line do not even have to slow down.

Stations can be built cheaply as well because the size and weight are a fraction of light rail. Stations can be built directly attached to the mall, hospitals, schools, businesses, etc., so passengers enjoy the convenience of being able to enter and exit the car inside a heated or air conditioned space, not exposed to the weather extremes outside.

PRT is the best way forward because of its low cost, convenience, and passenger safety and comfort.