Read this quote here on a posting on the NARP blog today …
Finally, concluding that the $96 for travel by automobile is the cheapest option, the reporter simply reflected the cost of gas and tolls, and ignoring the other very real costs a family faces, including interest payments on car loans or leases, insurance, and wear and tear on the car.
[All Things Not Considered - NARP Blog]
He’s right of course - the comparison of travel costs isn’t fair that way. But fact of the matter is, for most people who do have a car, insurance, car loan payments, etc. are just fixed costs. You have to pay them whether you actually use the car or not. And not having a car in the first place unfortunately is simply not an option in a lot of places here in the US. Especially for a family with (small) children.
So when you decide on what mode of transportation to choose for your next trip, the only incremental cost you incur for taking the car is indeed gas and tolls, plus some maintenance (but that cost is rather invisible). Whereas if you take car or airplane (or train), you will factor in the full cost.
It was different when I still lived in Switzerland. We didn’t have a car back then. But we did have an annual pass for all public transportation in the country. So the cost comparison was a lot different - the train had the “fixed cost” advantage in that case. Taking the train was essentially “free” for us …
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 31, 2007 8:21 am | Comments: (0)
Here are two interesting articles posted by RailPAC - they document some of the stations on Amtrak’s Sunset Limited route through Arizona and New Mexico … Well, if you can even call that a station (I wouldn’t …) … I mean, what are they trying to do here? Prevent people from taking the train instead of the opposite? There seems to be some room for improvement here (to put it nicely).
Posted in: Uncategorized | 8:11 am | Comments: (0)
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Having now lived out of the UK for over seven years I have been able to compare, first hand, the various transport alternatives that Europe has to offer.
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It looks like the new Japanese N700 series Shinkansen will start operation on July 1st.
Posted in: Uncategorized | 2:23 am | Comments: (0)
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Traveling in California this holiday weekend, it certainly would be convenient, even fun, to step aboard a 200-mph bullet train and zip around in quiet comfort.
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 30, 2007 2:21 am | Comments: (0)
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Rhealys is the common project company of the railways in France (SNCF),
Germany (DB AG), Switzerland (SBB) and Luxemburg (CFL)
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Thalys is a service provided jointly by the Belgian, French, Dutch and German railways. Tickets, fares, services and timetables.
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TGV Lyria operates TGV services between Paris and Switzerland
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Eurostar operates high speed train services between London and continental Europe (Paris, Brussels)
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 29, 2007 2:22 am | Comments: (0)
“Alleo” is the name of a new joint venture between SNCF (the French national railways) and DB (the German national railways). The new company is a 50/50 subsidiary of the two (still) state-owned railroad companies and will operate the high speed rail services on the new TGV Est high speed line between Paris and Frankfurt (using German ICE trainsets) and Paris and Stuttgart/Munich (using French TGV POS trainsets).
Services between Paris and Cologne (via Brussels) will continue to be operated by “Thalys”.
Services between Paris and Switzerland (Basel/Zurich) will be operated by the existing operator “Lyria”, which already operates the services from Paris to Geneva, Lausanne, Bern (and Zurich). Lyria is a joint venture between SNCF and SBB.
Thus, the existing project management firm “Rhealys” seems to have fulfilled its role - it’s future seems unclear at this point.
Update: there are conflicting reports as to the exact spelling of this new joint venture. Some put it as “Alleo”, some as “Aleo”… And since there is no official website or anything yet, I guess we just don’t know…
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 28, 2007 11:12 pm | Comments: (1)
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Want to get from Paris to London in just over two hours? How about Barcelona to Madrid in two and a half? Take the train.
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High speed electric rail requires the equivalent of 0.25 gallons per hundred passenger miles. That is compared to 2 gallons per hundred passenger miles to take an equivalent trip by air, or more than that with the typical 1.5 passengers per Ford Explorer.
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 27, 2007 2:21 am | Comments: (0)
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 26, 2007 2:20 am | Comments: (0)
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Anaheim through the Central Valley to the Bay Area was selected today as the first phase for construction of the statewide high-speed train network, in a decision by the California High-Speed Rail Authority during its monthly meeting.
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The Senate Budget Subcommittee that handles transportation (Senator Machado, Senator Kehoe, and Senator Dutton) voted this morning to flat out reject the Governor’s $1.3 billion in proposed cuts to public transit agencies on a 2-1 vote.
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An Assembly budget subcommittee approved $50 million to run the High Speed Rail Authority in 2007-08. A Senate budget subcommittee had approved $40 million Tuesday. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has recommended $1.7 million.
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So the federal government has been working on a study to see whether it’d be possible to get a high speed rail line between Charlotte and Macon, Ga. Yesterday, the group, called the Volpe Center, released a preliminary report.
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 25, 2007 2:23 am | Comments: (0)
The Assembly budget subcommittee approved $50 million yesterday …
For the second day in a row, legislators Wednesday defied the governor and boosted funding for the state’s proposed bullet train even as its board approved an initial route and tentative funding plan. An Assembly budget subcommittee approved $50 million to run the High Speed Rail Authority in 2007-08. A Senate budget subcommittee had approved $40 million Tuesday. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has recommended $1.7 million.
[Subcommittees approve funds for high-speed rail ]
See also:
Posted in: Uncategorized | May 24, 2007 8:44 pm | Comments: (0)
