Quote:
Originally Posted by shivtim
In most of the US, sure. But the Northeast has the required density, major city proximity, urban stations, existing transit infrastructure, and political support (mostly). As evidenced by the fact that we already have high speed rail in this corridor.
For Atlanta, it's a viable candidate for HSR to close destinations. For example, Atlanta and Charlotte could fit many of these requirements, since both have dense downtowns connected to local rail systems, and the distance between the cities is perfect. The political will and funding is the issue here.
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I agree with he BosWash perspective -it did match the 4 categories. However, it is still a very linear one major line system North-South. The East-West components, which were once there, have largely disappeared. The great rail hubs of Chicago, Cincinnati, Kansas City, etc. have largely disappeared. There remains a linear element on the West coast Seattle to San Diego. I believe, that with political will the BosWash corridor could extend to Raleigh Durham-Charlotte- Greenville-Atlanta and maybe eventually connect up with the Florida cities. The populations are growing fast in these areas. Still, the commuter train infrastructure is not there south of Washington; the tracks are, but the overwhelming use of the systems to carry freight makes passenger development very difficult. In addition, the budgets fro mass transit and public rail are very puny compared to the concrete road building budgets.
All things considered, the Atlanta region could, with political will, develop a very comprehensive rail transit system. Perhaps the millennials will succeed where previous generations have failed. Watching with interest, but heavy skepticism.