And that's supposed to be our future of transportation?
No, as you well know, the future of our transportation is not transcontinental service, but faster, more efficient regional service between cities that are 100~600 miles apart. For these shorter, regional trips, high-speed rail is much more efficient than short-hop air travel. And the fact that these regional routes also happen to link together in a continental network where one can relax and enjoy a more scenic excursion across America is an added benefit.
We could really streamline and speed up trains, make them, say, 500 miles an hour, give them wings and launch them from off the ground... we could call those contraptions aeroplanes !
How much will it cost for these regional lines of 100 to 600 miles?
I’m all for it. Just have it done by private companies that don’t get bogged down by politically-driven service plans and archaic railroad union rules.