The Milwaukee Road ran high speed passenger trains between the Twin Cities and Chicago until maybe 1950. The steam locomotives pulling these trains could cruise at 100 mph and had a top speed of 120.
http://www.steamlocomotive.com/streamlined/scrapped/hiawatha-3.jpg
http://www.germansteam.co.uk/FastestLoco/fastestloco.html#MR1
Not a cent of tax money was required. The railroads found it profitable to invest in fast passenger trains in that era. It’s not profitable today.
The Milwaukee Road ran high speed passenger trains between the Twin Cities and Chicago until maybe 1950
Right cities but rwo railroads. The Hiawatha (Burlington/Northern RR) (Diesel) and the 400 (Diesel) (NorthWestern RR) so named because it took 400 minutes (6.6 hours) between Chicago and the Twin Cities. Took the 400 often between a small town Adams WI and Chicago and was on its last run.. Great ride in luxury.
At the time beat the hell out of driving the 8 hours to get to either Chicago/Adams WI locations. If it was still around would use it because it equals todays driving time which is about 4 hours on Xways. BTW government regs lowered speeds to 78 mph on existing track most trains can run faster but I believe they are governerd
History lesson: The US Post Office paid for and operated a system of rail cars that would pick up, sort and drop off mail, while rolling, along all the major rail routes, nationwide. The railroads added passenger cars and sold tickets as an extra. Without the mail cars, they wouldn't have seen a profit. As mail delivery and handling switched from trains to central sorting and truck delivery, passenger rail died.
Ther local post office would sort mail to either east or west bound, and hang the bag out for the express to hook on the fly. Postal workers aboard the mail car would sort, bag and drop off bags, again on the fly, as they passed through the stations. (Remember Bugs and Yosemite Sam?) It was a wonder of logistics, when the Feds were still servants instead of our masters...
The commies, whose tiny little brains have an off switch that auto-engages at the word "profit," have never understood this. Hence, "high speed rail."
Mail traffic and freight service paid for those 100 mph steam engines. The freight trains loaded with grain from the elevators in the Twin Cities were what turned a profit for the Milwaukee Road.
