Is the US finally getting ‘all aboard’ with electric trains?
Two new electric trains are just a drop in the bucket.
"India is on the cusp of electrifying 100 percent of its rail lines, while China is nearing three-quarters of its network. Over 57 percent of the rail system in the European Union is electric. The US, which has historically prioritized personal cars over high-volume passenger trains, now can boast that it has two electric trains — and more on the way. "
They must not be counting light rail which is electric.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_rail_in_the_United_States
"The United States, with its 27 systems (as counted by the Light Rail Transit Association), has a much larger number of "true" light rail systems (not including streetcar systems), by far, compared to any other country in the world (the next largest are Germany with 10 and Japan with 9).[1]
According to the American Public Transportation Association, of the roughly 30 cities with light rail systems in the United States, the light rail systems in six of them (Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon), San Diego, and San Francisco) achieve more than 30 million unlinked passenger transits per year.[2]"
The problem with light rail here is excessive heat makes the overhead wire expand and when that happens, it sags causing the trains to have to slow down. :(
In the winter, the problem is snow and ice blocking the lines and the switches.
Canada isn’t even on the podium :P
Maybe we should reanimate John MacDonald. Not to be a politician or give him any legitimate power (for obvious reasons), just give him a bat and make him a CN lobbyist.
Surely we'd get our rail soon.
No. We're not even on board with trains as a concept outside of the context of heavy freight shipping. The people are. But big oil spends a lot of bribe money to make sure you can't easily ride a train across the country.
I wouldn’t doubt Big Airline spends as well.
Big freight train spends a lot on bribing too, to avoid needing to spend even more from being required to improve their services.
I fucking wish. We’re 50 damn years from common sense.
You optimist!
I wish. The US is endlessly far behind on public transportation.
Talking to my own family members around the US, they only have eyes for their enormous gas guzzler pickup trucks that they use to run to the grocery store down the street.
We don't need public transportation, we have something better, personal transportation... We also have a robust network for air travel that will take you anywhere in the country in a few hours.
You can have both. Europe has a great mix. So awesome to have the option to take the train or bus. They also have awesome road infrastructure in most places. Try comparing an American freeway to a German freeway. You feel like you're in a third world country when you come back to the roads in the States.
People driving around in personal tanks is not "something better".
It's dumb, privileged, unsustainable, unhealthy, violent, and literally destroying the planet.
I can't wait for the US to finally have decent public transport, I hate having to drive for everything
I live in a big city with public transport. It's great.
I’m always conflicted because I happen to have an LA Metro train close to me, but riding it is always scary because there are violent people, tweakers, creeps everywhere.
When I was in Mexico City recently the trains there weren’t as pretty and they were packed with people, but I didn’t see people tweaking out left and right (or at all). I actually very much enjoyed using their transit system.
Yeah, LA transit sucks, but it can be better. I wish I lived close to a line in my area (SLC), because every time I end up riding it, I enjoy it.
Now that the US doesn't rely on auto manufacturing as its main industry, people are coming around on trains.
But, what's that rule about headlines ending in a question mark? 🤔
No. The answer is always No.
Today on Nightline, is Janice from makeup going to respond favorably to my persistent battery of raunchy pickup lines?
We actually have more light rail systems than any other country in the world. Those are all electric, but yeah heavy rail is all diesel still.
This was not hard to find:
I don't understand this article. It talks as if these trains in California are the US' first electric trains.
Our light rail here in Portland OR is electric.
And it's better implemented than LA's. Our system has stations in the middle of barren areas in many places. NIMBYism is a cancer in California.
There's only one solution for the US. The world's fastest bullet train network. Anything less will not do.
The new red line between San Francisco and San Jose is the newly built electric rail line.
The coloured lines are electrified railway. It really does stick out, its good progress.