>> More than a few........the NE, NYC-DC, Atlanta, Denver and Chicago as hubs and spokes, Cleveland to Cinci, FL, TX, SF to SD, Vancouver to Portland.
The Amtrak Crescent, which runs daily round trips between New Orleans and NYC -- through Birmingham, Atlanta, Charlotte, DC and Philly, carried an average of 400 riders each direction last year. Now, I realize that with high-speed trains you can increase the ridership. But it is pretty much the least cost way of making that trip at $150 and people don't use it. Having ridden these rural Amtraks a few times, they are easily the most comfortable way of making such a trip, even if they take a little longer.
The point is, in America people don't want to take trains, period, and sure not in the South where population densities are low and the hassle of driving is minimal.
When we have taken the train we've had to go way out of our way to do it. Even on busy holiday weekends, the City of New Orleans isn't usually crowded.
If companies want to build them, fine. But taxpayer dollars ought not to be spent on it absent an usually compelling situation. |
