High-speed rail is common in Europe and Asia but is practically absent in the United States. How can it be that a country like Uzbekistan can have more high-speed rail than the United States? Will the US ever get high-speed rail or is it only to have cars and airplanes forever (at least until the hyperloop comes along)?
High-speed rail is the fastest mode of commercial ground transportation. In the United States, it is hard to find any high-speed railways. Many people travel to Europe and Asia and use their sleek and modern high-speed trains and then come back to the USA asking why the country doesn't have any.
What is High-Speed Rail and Who Has It
While there is no set definition of what high-speed rail is, it is a type of rail transport that runs significantly faster than traditional rail. Generally, lines that are built to handle speeds of above 250 km/h (155 mph) and upgraded lines in excess of 200 km/h (124 mph) are considered to be high-speed.
- First High-Speed Rail: The Japanese Tōkaidō Shinkansen Built In 1964 (Known As The Bullet Train)
Today China has by far the most high-speed rail in the world with over 37,900 kilometers or 23,500 miles of high-speed rail - that's over two-thirds of the world's total high-speed rail. Not only that, but it also has the fastest high-speed rail in regular operation.
- China: Alone Has Over Two-Thirds of The World's High-Speed Rail
- Fastest Commerical Passenger Rail: The Shanghai Maglev Train (Reaches Speeds of Up to 451 km/h or 268 mph)
- Fastest Train On Record: A Euroduplex TGV Train Once Reached 575 km/h or 357
- Future Fastest: The Japanese Chuo Shinkansen From Tokyo To Osaka To Get To Speeds of 505 km/h (314 mph) - Opening in 2027
The Sorry State Of US High-Speed Rail
High-Speed Rail remains something of a foreign concept for many Americans (especially for those who live outside of the Northeast Corridor). In much of the world, trains are considered the cutting edge of technology and the best modes of transport, but in the USA many think of trains as antiquated - possibly because most of the trains in the USA are antiquated.
"...the Acela Express remains the closest thing the U.S. has to true high-speed rail (several lines in Europe and Asia top well over 200 mph"
The Acela Express links Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington DC. But it fails to meet the 3-hour time objective between NYC and Boston taking 3 hours and 24 minutes. The fastest scheduled time is 3 hours and 30 minutes with an average speed of 66 mph (106 km/h). From Boston to Washington averages around 70.3 mph (113.1 km/h). It has a maximum speed of 240 km/h (150 mph) on one small section.
As of November 2021, the United States only had one high-speed rail line under construction - the California High-Speed Rail in California. With other plans in the works.
In short, there just isn't really any high-speed rail in America and its railways have experienced decades of neglect. They were poised for a comeback, but then the pandemic set everything back once again and as people stayed at home, ridership plummeted.
There are several high-speed rail systems in the US that are in various stages of development including:
- Florida: Virgin Trains USA - Linking Miami to West Palm Beach (Will Operate Upto 125 mph)
- Southern California to Las Vegas: Virgin Trains USA subsidiary XpressWest Linking Metropolitan Los Angeles to Las Vegas (Top Speed 180 mph and only 90-minute ride, May be Operational By The End of 2023)
- Dallas and Houston: In Fewer than 90 Minutes Top Speed 200mph
- Chicago and St. Louis: the Modest goal of Reaching Only 110 mph With Upgrades
- Pacific Northwest: Link Seattle, Portland, and Vancouver in 2 Hours - Microsoft is An Early Backer of The Project
The Potential of High-Speed Rail In The USA
Today many are public and private entities are advocating for sustainability including in transport. In that, if one was to take the train across the US instead of a plane, the carbon dioxide emissions would be about half.
According to hok.com, the rail network in the USA "has long been plagued by an aging infrastructure and a need for upgraded systems." They also note "Generational trends are also playing a role. Millennials and Gen Zers are less interested in getting driver’s licenses than past generations and are buying fewer cars."
HOK has a master plan for Union Station in downtown Washington, D.C., and proposes ideas for transforming the station into a world-class center for high-speed rail.
Their vision would also mean that people would be able to trail the 300 miles from Chicago to St. Louis without having to travel from downtown to the airport. They would not have to worry about long security lines, have unlimited WiFi, not have to worry about weather delays, and take about the same amount of time as going by air.
They say it is "a way of covering distances in a relaxed, almost magical way that isn’t possible with driving or air travel.”