Way of the future
Have any state or local surveys been given asking what the “people” really think about this issue? I don’t know much about a high-speed rail system because I’ve never ridden on high-speed trains. (For instance, would you travel at the speed of business, and is that dial-up or 4G?)
I have ridden passenger rail both here and abroad. Between N.J and N.Y in the 70s and later in the UK and Europe. It was comfortable and carried me from A to B with no major bells or whistles, so to speak. What about a comparison of cost and rideability in countries actually using such systems?
Cost and availability seem to be a problem … I was in National City, Calif. in 2007; there they have a low-speed rail that allows you, back then for $1.00, to go to the Mexico border and give your business to Mexico.
Here’s a suggestion for more practical rail, with cost not assumed. Have a low-speed rail system that not only interconnects many city hubs in Ohio, but also goes through the major air terminals and other possible locations. Make it “green” by having solar panels on the passenger car roofs running an electric locomotive. Have a gym in one of the cars that converts “human energy” into electricity to aid the system during low sun-energy periods.
OK, the gym might be a stretch, but the thought that young people are going to be the ones that really turn this country around suggests they should be the ones pushing the hardest. The rest of us carrying our years of “representative burden” will appreciate your attempt at a better democracy for all … regardless of it’s speed.
We do need to consider moving to an increased use of mass transit over time, only a short-sighted neanderthal would suggest otherwise.
J.P.
[RE: DCP Debate Forum, 2/16/11]
