High-Speed Rail - A Top Priority for Surface Transportation Authorization
Posted by Al Engel, AECOM
Civil War veteran and political leader Robert G. Ingersoll said, “He loves his country best who strives to make it best.” And one important way we can respect that principle is by advancing high-speed rail (HSR).
We are way behind. By most estimates, Europe and parts of Asia are decades ahead of the United States when it comes to HSR and China is cleaning our clock. And I’m not the only one who thinks so.
“Imagine whisking through towns at speeds over 100 miles an hour, walking only a few steps to public transportation, and ending up just blocks from your destination,” explained President Barack Obama in an address last April on HSR. “It is happening right now; it’s been happening for decades. The problem is, it’s been happening elsewhere, not here.
“What we need, then, is a smart transportation system equal to the needs of the 21st century,” added President Obama, “A system that reduces travel times and increases mobility, a system that reduces congestion and boosts productivity, a system that reduces destructive emissions and creates jobs. There’s no reason why we can’t do this.”
President Obama has a point. HSR is one of the best ways to move people, whether the metric of interest is energy consumed, land used, or units of carbon emitted into the air. It is advantageous economically, environmentally, and practically. We can build HSR here. And we should — for a number of very good reasons.
HSR Reduces Dependency of Fossil Fuels
Relying on foreign oil and fossil fuels diminishes our control over our collective destiny. Uncertain supplies and unstable pricing make things worse. But with an electrified HSR system, multiple energy sources can be used to generate the requisite electricity, including nuclear, hydroelectric, or solar. Because of this flexibility, HSR is an environmentally friendly, sustainable technology.
HSR Reduces Congestion
In this country, most people drive. They drive because there are few practical alternatives. A comprehensive HSR system could change that, reducing the number of cars on our highways. But congestion is in no way limited to roads.
A recent study by the Brookings Institute revealed that half of U.S. air traffic is regional. They define that to mean that half the flying public goes less than 500 miles on each flight. With a regional HSR system, those flights could be largely eliminated, creating much more efficient and effective downtown-to-downtown travel. In addition, airport gates could be freed for international travel. Current airports could be more judiciously used and new airports — huge capital investments unto themselves — might not even need to be built.
HSR and U.S. Olympic Pursuits
In the fierce competition to host Olympic events, Chicago lost to Rio de Janeiro and New York lost to London. All else being equal, one striking difference between the two winning and losing cities is HSR. Rio does not yet have HSR; but the country is seeking bids to build HSR between Rio and Sao Paolo (Brazil’s largest city), with service to be available in time for the games.
The host of the 2012 games, London, is already connected to Europe by HSR through the Chunnel. Travelers can enter London’s center via a one-seat ride from either Paris or Brussels. While Chicago and New York — both contenders for the Olympic games — have good urban and regional rail networks, they have no true HSR under the international definition available. It seems fairly clear that, HSR was a factor in the decision-making process.
HSR and the Rest of the World
Japan started its famous Shinkansen or “bullet train” in 1964. Now they have 1,500 HSR route miles. Europe began its HSR system in 1981 with the Paris-to-Lyon route. Today, HSR service crisscrosses Europe in a comprehensive network. Taking that example to heart, China on July 1, 2010 is opening its fourth HSR line since 2008 and expects to have more than 10,000 HSR route miles in operation by 2030, with the Beijing-Shanghai line already opening in 2012. Vietnam, Turkey, Russia — the global HSR list is long. But until recently, with the exception of Amtrak’s Acela Express service in the Northeast Corridor, a U.S. list didn’t even exist.
HSR Is an Investment
All infrastructure costs money, and HSR is no exception. But it is an investment. And the cost for building capacity in alternative modes could be much higher and at greater environmental cost. Imagine how different our country would be if the builders of our 19th-century railroad system balked because of the cost of the Transcontinental Railway. Would we have developed the Western half of the United States? Or would it be part of Spain now? Or Mexico? Investments cost money, but they pay dividends. Like the Transcontinental Railway, the New York City subway system, and the ARC Mass Transit Tunnel, an HSR system is an infrastructure investment that will pay great dividends well into the next century.
One of the best ways to minimize the investment cost is to take the HSR process out of the political arena. Establish a legislative program that has long-term stability, so that we can develop efficient designs, and program the system so that the effort is not awkwardly mobilizing and then demobilizing in very inefficient ways. Build a national system in a systematic way to gain efficiencies and economies of scale, build our own domestic industry, much like the Eisenhower Highway System program did. The key is long-term vision and stability.
We are way behind in HSR. But in many areas, the United States leads the world. We are inventive, effective, and determined. When it comes to freight rail, for example, we are the envy of the world. Why can’t we do the same thing with high-speed rail? We can and we should. High-speed rail is not just a good, environmentally friendly, economically advantageous idea. It is also a patriotic imperative.
Al Engel is the Philadelphia-based vice president and high-speed rail director for AECOM, a global provider of professional services.
June 18th, 2010 at 12:34 pm
Mr. Engel “whisking through towns at 100 per…” is exciting, but suppose you live in the town that gets the whisking?
We have here a paradox; America used to have trains, electric and diesel and even some steam like North Westerns’s 400 and Milwaukee Hiawathas that ran through small towns at 100 per. What we also had then, neglected by Mr. Engel & AECOM, was a very comprehensive matrix of rail mains, secondaries, branches, and local Interurban Electric Railways. This rail “SYSTEM” of the pre-freeway era was crucial, and made the rarer high-speed scheduling both technically and politically (& Economically) natural.
Mr. Engel (AECOM) would help the HSR cause immensely and the HSR scheme potential for success, by engaging the country in generic railway upgrade discussion. Talk to energy authorities like Richard Heinberg and Jim Woolsey and people like Ann Mesnifkoff at The Sierra Club, etc.
Rebuilding the dormant rail branchlines and adding container/trailer handling facilities at several hundred strategic points enroute main rail trunks is part of this energy emergency scenario. Unlikely? Think again… Looking at the next act in the Oil Interregnum, Federal Executive Emergency Orders for motor fuel rationing, and generic railway expansion is suddenly the most natural step we can take!
America is big enough to support selected HSR projects. For the other 90% of the population, engaging assistance from reformed Army/Guard Railroad Operating & Mantenance Battalions is means to expedite priority (agricultural/necessity of life goods) dormant branch lines. Interested parties and responsibles with initiative, see spv.co.uk for US Rail Map Volumes for your respective locale, and learn the rail territory, past & present.
Renewable Energy Generation and railway? See Christopher C. Swan’s page: “Suntrain Transportation Corporation” and book “ELECTRIC WATER” (New Society Press,2007).
-Keep “Em Rolling”- Godspeed, Mr. Engel!