It's why I wouldn't fly between DC and NYC. By the time you arrive more than an hour early at the terminal, stand in line to check your luggage, stand in another line to get through the security checkpoint, walk a mile to your gate, board the plane and wait for takeoff, arrive at your destination, walk another mile to baggage claim then arrange for transportation to the city, I can take a cheaper train or luxury bus, ride in comfort and arrive 3 to 4 hours later in the heart if the city.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

yeah there's certain corridors where it would make more sense than others....LA to San Diego is another, LA to Las Vegas. The CAHSR though is stupid, that's a little too far for HSR, it's 380 miles (611 km), and the stupid route choices from the CAHSRA make it 500 miles. Plus it's a three hour ride when the plane can do it an hour. I wouldn't ride a train DC to Boston either, it's faster to fly that. DC to NYC is borderline, Philadelphia to NYC is definitely a train distance. 🙂 In some of these cases, it's more of an argument to improve public transit to the local airport. Like here in San Jose, if I lived in downtown still (I had to move back to the suburb where I grew up for personal reasons, hopefully I can move back soon), I could get to SJC in about 30 minutes through a combination of light rail and the bus. But from what I understand, it takes about an hour to get from Manhattan to JFK. Surely New York can improve on that. 🙂I know there's the blade service that takes you from the Manhattan heliport to JFK in five minutes. There will be a lot more of those services soon, as they transition from gas helicopters to battery powered eVTOL (Joby Aviation et al.). 🙂 Is the gate really a mile from the TSA checkpoint at JFK? At SJC the gates are steps away. You might have to walk five minutes to your gate after you're through security. I think it's about the same at SFO, though I haven't flown out of there in a while, I usually use SJC. 🙂

@MrShuaTV

Ай бұрын

DC to Boston you’re better off on the train.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

@@MrShuaTV "DC to Boston you’re better off on the train." No, it's too far. Acela takes 6 hours, 50 minutes. A jet aircraft takes 1 hour, 25 minutes. Maybe if Acela could maintain the same speed east of NYC that has from DC to NYC, it would be a reasonable competitor. But as it stands right now it's like five times slower than the aircraft. Come on, now.

I would love to see Amtrak bring back vintage sleeper cars where you actually have a decent room and it is a vacation experience

Upstate New York-Albany, Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo-and Cleveland, to Chicago.

i would still ride sleeper trains if i have enough time for it. its a vacation experience for me and i do enjoy the time admiring the scenery, not to mention the interesting conversations with new ppl during dining times. that said, i do wish amtrak does update the fleet, really would appreciate more power outlets that are better positioned

you 2 are the best! glad you exist and grateful

If I need to get from Southern California to San Francisco in a hurry, I'll fly. I want to take the Starlight up the coast with my wife as an excursion. The ride IS the vacation.

@Lynn-kh5rs

Ай бұрын

Agreed. I don't see how you can enjoy the scenery when traveling 150-200 mph.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

indeed. I'm proud I voted no on the CAHSR. The private sector already gets you there in an hour, so what's the point? Especially when they want 100 billion. I've ridden the Coast Starlight from Seattle all the way down to San Jose, as my "ride home from the Navy" (the DoD pays for your ride home). I got a roomette, it was great. It just doesn't replace being able to get from San Jose to Seattle in two hours, for a weekend thing, like to go to a fan convention. 🙂

I live in the northeast and there’s so many railroads that are privately owned by cargo/freight lines only. If Amtrak or a private company could break a deal that could really make getting around the northeast easier.

Dallas to Houston to San Antonio to Austin to Dallas - TEXAS TRIANGLE 💯

@neutronjack7399

Ай бұрын

You can bet Southwest Airlines is the chief force against this proposal, because it cuts into one of their best routes.

@linleyj

Ай бұрын

The land owners are a HUGE barrier to the Houston to Dallas route. I know a lot of people with land in the area and they are fighting it hard.

@lindabyrd7025

Ай бұрын

I don’t blame the land owners in Texas for resisting the Dallas to Houston route.

I’m hoping for a Raleigh-Charlotte-Atlanta HSR route. I-85 is the pits. I’d use ATL-CHI from Charlotte, seems more efficient than going to DC or NYC to get to Chicago.

@davidjackson7281

Ай бұрын

Would not Raleigh to DC need to be HSR beforehand? Though in the meantime perhaps Atlanta to Charlotte would be a great city pair.

I just got home from my first trip on Amtrak from Philadelphia to Durham NC, and your videos helped me navigate the trip so much! Love this content and will be taking more trains in my future! So much less stressful than airports 😅

The smoothest high-speed train I've travelled on was between Beijing and Shanghai. That's when I tried my 'rock 'n' roll' test for the first time. I place an inverted water bottle on a table or window ledge and see if it topples or watch the ripples inside the bottle. I also was able to place a 2 Euro coin - on it's edge - without it toppling over. No European high-speed train has come close.

I'm excited about high speed rail (!) and live near Houston. The problem is that neither city has much public transport infrastructure. So you'd arrive without a car, but then instantly need a car to get around. Houston is okay in the downtown area, there's limited transit but very little outside of that and I'm not sure about Dallas at all.

@alexandrac591

Ай бұрын

I really hope they address that. All levels of transit are important.

After working in the mechanical department of the UP/SP railroad I can say that in order to have true hi speed trains is to eliminate road crossings. Each state has MPH all trains can come up to at road crossings.

I think the sleeper train in California will still be around since it goes all the way up to Seattle. We don’t need a sleeper from LA to SF as it is. It’s not a long enough ride.

Another city pair that has no current train connection: Phoenix - Las Vegas. There are plans to build a new interstate highway I-11 between those two cities. However, putting a passenger train along a future I-11 highway median would be a not-so-good solution. A better rail pathway would be to use an existing freight rail line between Phoenix and Parker, AZ on the border with California. Then build some 120 miles of new "Green" right-of-way connecting Parker with Boulder City, Nevada. Continuing on the existing rail line to Las Vegas, and using the new Brightline West station as the final stop. For rolling stock, use the same 100+ MPH equipment as used on Amtrak's Chicago - St. Louis "Lincoln" service. Note: the existing 12 mile BNSF freight segment between Topock, AZ & Needles, CA with a rail bridge over the Colorado River (currently used daily by the SW Chief) could also be used.

@martharetallick204

22 сағат бұрын

And Tucson to Phoenix!

On another note, Bullet trains and european hi speed trains run on NEW dedicated trackways. They do not bump over 50 yo freight tracks that are hammered by heavy trains multiple times a day. That's why Acela will never truly be hi speed. It does not have a dedicated trackway.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

that's another thing that makes it hard to justify the cost out here, if you're trying to build brand new railroad. Especially if you don't just build it down the median of the appropriate highway. Brightline is building it down the median of I-15, so they don't have to buy new land to build their train. We did that with parts of the Light Rail here in Silicon Valley, it goes right down the median of 87. Unfortunately other parts are at grade, going through downtown (thanks, San Jose RDA). 🙂

I am really looking forward to the Acella. Trains are great. Like you said, It saves time. No TSA checkpoints and the long airport entry timeline. San Antonio-Austin-Dallas along the I-35 corridor would be great. Awesome video. Trains are great!

@male9600

Ай бұрын

RE:No TSA checkpoints and the long airport entry timeline - add no traffic hazards nor agravation from bad drivers, bad weather is seldom a serious factor. For people in close cities such as mentioned this is the answer to air & road congestion.

@ronclark9724

Ай бұрын

Texas Central plans is for HSR from Dallas to Houston, not along the I-35 or I-10 corridor to Austin or San Antonio...

My dream is LA to Jacksonville, Florida. We live in Arizona and would love to be able to connect across the southern US.

Dallas to Houston I’m excited. We’ve been hearing about this for decades I’m glad that it’s finally happening.

Thank you for another informative video. Part of the issue with trains or any public transportation in the US is the great distances and varied terrain. Kansas City to Denver. I personally would still ride the overnight trains if I am traveling to a location to start a backpacking trip. Train travel allows you to acclimate, better to new surroundings. Train travel can also get you into a slower more intentional state of mind. I get it though, not everyone is retired or even want to experience the transformation as part of the journey. Thank you for another informative video. ❤😊

I have high confidence in Brightline getting their service up and running between Vegas and the LA area. Their Florida service is top-notch, and rivals Europe. As a private enterprise, they have a lot of incentive to finish on time and close to budget. CAHSR, on the other hand, is probably decades away from carrying its first passenger.

@terrynelson1587

Ай бұрын

It is not going into LA, but to Rancho Cucamonga, you would still have about a 2 hour drive to get into LA. It is a joke and they have been saying this for about 40 years now.

@mariegarside8830

Ай бұрын

​@terrynelson1587 Bright Line West connects with the extensive MetroLink system ao Rancho Cucamonga. MetroLink has services to six of the seven Southern California counties. California High-speed Rail will have two connections to MetroLink and two to Bright Line West. The environmental reports were cleared for California High-speed Rail. Making clearanced more than 440+ miles.

@TheRailwayDrone

Ай бұрын

I absolutely would NOT call Brightline Florida's service something that "rivals" Europe. You can't have a "high speed" train with multiple railway crossings with cars that have caused multiple accidents.

@jasonacg

Ай бұрын

@@TheRailwayDrone I was referring mainly to cleanliness and frequency. It's definitely no TGV, but it's probably as good as this country will see for a while.

@TheRailwayDrone

Ай бұрын

@@jasonacg I will give you that. Brightline definitely has the cleanest trains and stations this country has ever seen.

High Speed Pairs: KC to Chicago KC to Dallas KC to Albuquerque KC to Denver KC to Minneapolis KC to St. Louis (would be short) KC to just about anywhere. Kansas City should just be a hub to everywhere. :) SF to LV. LA to LV. SF to Portland. SF to Seattle. SF to LA. SF to San Diego LA to Phoenix. Dallas to Phoenix. NY to Orlando. NY to Miami. NY to Atlanta. It seems like the 'big cities' that might be involved would include: Seattle, Portland, SF, LA, San Diego, LV, Phoenix, Tucson, Albuquerque, Denver, San Antonito, Houston, Dallas, KC, Minneapolis, Chicago, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Nashville, Cincinnati, Atlanta, Jacksonville, Orlando, Miami, Charlotte, DC, and NY.

Both Brightline projects have advantages. In Florida, the company already owns the right of way of the freight railroad. I hope other freight railroads will consider similar projects on their lines. In the West, most of the route uses the I-15 right of way, so not as much land needs to be acquired. Maybe this template could be used elsewhere. Another observation: critics complain about spending billions of dollars on HSR. Meanwhile, $19 billion is to be spent on just one airport renovation, JFK in New York, although the costs will likely be higher in the end.

Hi Ali and Rob, great content here. Excited to learn Amtrak is climbing on board with high speed rail. If they could make the roomettes a little larger! Side note, we just got back from a fabulous 10-day scenic tour of Switzerland by rail. What a gorgeous country. And a very smooth and punctual train system! Keep up the good work!!

@hydej1667

Ай бұрын

The state of California alone is ten times bigger than the whole country of Switzerland. High speed rail does not pencil out in the US. Amtrak is already a losing proposition, the ridership is just Not there. We the Taxpayers have been supporting Amtrak since it's inception.

@davidjackson7281

Ай бұрын

@@hydej1667 Perhaps some long distance routes are not very profitable but the NEC and the ACELA are very popular and are profit-able. The Pacific Surfliner route has Amtrak's second highest ridership. BLW, which is 75% in California, will most defintely pencil out.

@hydej1667

Ай бұрын

@@davidjackson7281 Amtrak has 37 routes . . . only three are profitable, and these Don't even come close to making the company profitable as a whole. We, the American taxpayers, are paying for their losses each year, and the losses have been increasing most years. The three routes that are "making" money don't even come close to covering the losses of the other 34 routes. To sink more money into an already losing "business" is Not good for the American people, most of whom will never even ride the trains. As one of the budget spokespersons for Amtrak said last year "The new budget assumes $1 billion per year combined operational losses, in perpetuity." That doesn't really sound like a good investment for the American people, even without the contemplation of spending hundreds of billions to trillions more on fast rail which will Never pay for itself.

@davidjackson7281

Ай бұрын

@@hydej1667 Think whatever you want ye of little faith. Amtrak is growing and will be here forevermore.

Hello Allie & Rob, ive been a subscriber for awhile now and love all the reviews, i would still take a sleeper / Coach train just to be able to see more of the USA, the high speed train would also be great because i would only have 9 days of vacation, it would be the best of borh type of trains. God bless you and your Family always.

I thought this project would never get started. Great news.

@pastorjerrykliner3162

Ай бұрын

It still hasn't. If...IF...this project actually comes to fruition, then I'll celebrate. But until the moment it actually happens, it's still just a concept.

@colinwinogradoff6794

Ай бұрын

They've been saying "next year" since the 1990s. I doubt this project will happen in our lifetimes.

As an elderly, mobility-challenged single traveller, I have no wish to ride coach. I like my privacy and the quiet atmosphere of the sleeper cabins. No seat mate to annoy or keep me 'penned up' in my window seat or even a sick person in the car that infects a whole lot of people. I've earned my peace and quiet.

Thank you for the information.

America loves there cars they just opened on section of light rail in Honolulu. No body riding it

I guess Amtrak finally realized they should have never replaced the Houston part of the Texas Eagle with a bus from Longview. I would like to see train service between Philadelphia and Columbus, OH. I'll be traveling there at least once a year.

@carlenerobinson4938

Ай бұрын

How about from Cincinnati, OH to Phoenix, AZ ?

I live in Memphis, where currently we only have the City of New Orleans to CHI/NOLA. I know we're probably not high (if at all) on the list of cities under consideration for high-speed service, but just for grins, how about MEM-DAL or MEM-HOU...these two cities are the ones I travel to most in Texas. Dallas would be more practical of course, since it's a relatively straight shot from Memphis-I've made that drive more times than I can recall! Or MEM-STL, MEM-ATL; those routes would be handy to people attending Cards or Braves games, for example. Though they're fairly close for a high-speed train, there are also Little Rock and Nashville. And if they restore the Sunset Limited route to Florida as it used to be, it would be cool to have a high-speed train to NOLA or to Gulfport-Biloxi to make a connection. I realize that's all pie in the sky, but why not dream big?

I work for an airline and can travel standby anywhere, but choose to take the Amtrak sleeper routes for the experience. I would hate to lose the California Zephyr, Empire Builder or Southwest Chief to high speed routes.

Thanks for the information

Knoxville to Memphis is such a long drive. It would be great to have a high speed train.

This is so awesome! I would still want to ride the sleeper train to take in the views.

I still want to experience a train ride on a roomette, which I haven't done because I find it expensive. Though I've ridden on a train from Orlando to Tampa. And I really like it.

@alexandrac591

Ай бұрын

was it amtrak or brightline?

@lisivelazquez65

Ай бұрын

So far I've only ridden on Amtrak... One of these days I will ride on a roomette.

Hi guys! We really enjoy your videos! What I'd love to see Amtrak do is get right-of-way on US rails! Especially on the NE corridor but also transcontinental. It's ridiculous that Amtrak takes a backseat to freight train, although I understand why. I was planning to take Amtrak from San Antonio via Chicago to Virginia next April but I found a really good price on air non-stop home, so I canceled the train that would have been around $1300. And I agree, San Antonio to Dallas would be great!

Great video! I think you would get a mix of riders on the LA to SF route. I feel there are the leisure travelers who want the sleeping car and business travelers who want the high speed train. Personally, I would love to see to Chicago to Detroit route for a high speed train.

@Queque2524

Ай бұрын

Minneapolis/St Paul to Chicago is needed and go through to Detroit. With stops in Milwaukee and Eau Claire and maybe a couple more to the east.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

It's not even just business travelers who want speed. If you're just going down to see a concert and then fly back, you want that trip to be as fast as possible. Travelers like that will continue to fly, and it's still much faster than HSR. LA to SF is 380 miles. A plane does it in only one hour. It doesn't take three hours for the whole process. Maybe I could give you two hours if we count travel to the airport and getting there 40 min early or so. The LA to SF California HSR one is planned to take about three hours (officially, 2 hrs 40 min, not clear if they will be able to do it that fast or how many runs would be nonstop). So that's already three times slower than flying, or at least 30% if you count the flight as two hours. I voted no on the CAHSR. What I would support instead is incrementally improving performance of the coastal rail line (the one that the Coast Starlight uses). This is already being done with existing budgets. Chicago to Detroit is probably a little far also, that's 283 miles... I think in a lot of cases, just increasing the average speed of Amtrak would help a lot, not to HSR speeds, but to average 75 as opposed to the current 35. For example Chicago to Detroit, at average 75 mph, would take 3.7 hours instead of the current five hours. SF to LA, isntead of the current 11 hours would take five hours. 🙂

Hi there, Allie and Rob. I just came back home to Sacramento over Memorial Day weekend from a 3-Train, 7-Day trip on Amtrak, all in a roomette. I would definitely do it again. Now, when it comes to taking a sleeping car train or a three to four hour high speed train, it, for me, will depend on the situation presented. I live in Sacramento, and have a July outing to Angel Stadium in Anaheim as well as an August outing to Dodger Stadium. For both of those outings, I will be riding trains and buses associated with the Amtrak San Joaquins. Same is true with a ballgame I am attending on June 23rd in Oakland. For that, it is just a 2-hour ride each way on the Amtrak Capitol Corridor. Now, if I were to go to an NBA game at the new Intuit Dome in Inglewood near SoFi Stadium, between the Clippers and the Sacramento Kings, I would now prefer to board Southwest round trip from SMF to LAX. If high speed rail could get me there in three to five hours, plus a shuttle like the LA Metro Route 40 from Union Station to Inglewood, I would do that over taking a sleeping car train or a Southwest flight in future years from now.

We’ve ridden some of these routes…but the real issue is not the trains, but THE TRACKS!!!! Most of the track right of ways are on freight routes. As long as they are building exclusive tracks that’s a maybe

@LaundryFaerie

Ай бұрын

When Amtrak was founded, it was granted right of way over freights. It still (technically) has the right of way. But American companies value getting product and making money quickly over the needs of the slim number of Americans who ride trains. Seems like something we ought to write our congresscritters about, since all these freight companies are technically breaking the law.

cant wait to try my first new route!

Turn Dallas Ft. Worth into a mini hub. Train to Corpus, Houston, Kansas City, Denver, Salt Lake. Would be awesome.

Houston/Dallas in my lifetime please!

It's about time.

No experience with trains in Japan, but have been on the TGV in France. Maybe a report on those next would be great. My experience was very good.

Lots of wish lists: Dallas to New Orleans, New Orleans to Orlando (yeah, both of those are probably never happening, lol). As long as trains such as CA Zephyr & Empire Builder remain, I think the high speed trains are so welcome and will induce more to train travel. Exciting news!

Commuting is all about less time. Tourism is all about experience. It will be kewl if the tourism trains up their experience while the commuter trains take care of the crowds. I really think someone needs to think of a way to tackle cross country (not north south) with key stops along the way.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

HSR is too slow for east-west cross country. At French TGV speeds it would take 13 hours, versus five hours to fly. HSR's sweet spot is about 200 miles....less than that and you can drive/bus/normal speed train, more than that and flying is so much faster that there's no point. 🙂

San Francisco to Los Angeles sounds like a good plan. If I was Amtrak I would maybe take the sleeper train off that route once ut goes high speed and try and do an extra California Zephyr service each day ?

Regarding service between LA and SF, it’s important to point out that Amtrak’s Coast Starlight travels a route, more or less, along US 101. Also, it only connects to San Francisco by way of an Amtrak bus connector from Emeryville. The CA HSRA is planned for a completely different route, through the Antelope Valley, Tehachapi, and then through the central Valley cities (US 99.) I do at times travel between Ventura County and San Francisco, but I don’t use the Coast Stalight for that. Plus, for that stretch, a sleeper isn’t worth it since that part is during the daytime. Instead, I’ll take either the Surfliner to San Luis Obispo, and then a bus connector the rest of the way directly into SF. Alternately, I’ll take the Amtrak bus connector from the coast, Santa Barbara-Bakersfield route, with a San Joaquin train. My experience is that those options are easier and more reliable. I’ll use the Coast Starlight if I’m going further north, Northern California, Oregon or Washington. LA-Seattle is only one overnight. Anyway, great topics, you two. Love the travels. Great job. 😊

Living in the bay area, I would LOVE to take a sleeper starlight one way and speed the other. sounds like the perfect combo. We've taken the starlight both ways in a roomette which felt a bit long on the trip home/north.

This would not be high speed but Virginia really needs an east-west route - like Roanoke to Norfolk - so you don’t have to go up to DC and back! Roanoke to Atlanta via Chattanooga (Choo Choo) would be great as well. We can dream!

@robertstutes2547

Ай бұрын

Having said that - things have improved in the last 10 years with Roanoke going from 0 to 1 to 2 trains a day to DC/NY!

I watch a clip of yours a week ago showing the new plans for lines... Living in Phoenix I was interested in the map showing lines from Phoenix ... BUT im NOT holding my breath! We havent had rail service for many years because of fighting over who's going to pay. I just dont see how they coukd do it.. city is built up and there's no way to build it unless they put it to the south of city off the 10. Folks in every small town will cause problems, wanting a stop, Government getting involved is the death of it.

The California high speed rail project runs on the San Joaquins route through the Central Valley, not the Coast Starlight route along the coast. HSR will replace the San Joaquins from Bakersfield to Merced (the San Joaquins will continue running between Merced and Oakland / Sacramento, at least until later HSR phases are complete). The San Joaquins was Amtraks 7th busiest route in the US in 2023. I don't think that ridership on the CS will go down. That route is about the scenery. The San Joaquins gets you LA to Oakland almost two hours faster than the CS right now.

@mariegarside8830

Ай бұрын

Capitol Corridor, ACE, and Cal Rail trains are all expanding. Which will improve service in that area. The Starlight and Surfliner operate primarily on single tracks. Infrastructure funds were designated for expanding to a two track system.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

@@mariegarside8830 it's "caltrain", not "cal rail". Are you one of those foreigners trying to dictate what transportation system the USA should use. We have it covered, thanks. 🙂

@mariegarside8830

Ай бұрын

@neutrino78x Gee, you have made quite the assumption. I am a native Californian born here in Southern California. Never lived outside the state. I am very pro railroads. I have been since my first trip to San Francisco before Amtrak. Back when San Francisco had a train station. I am extremely pro public transportation, and public transportation is my primary form of getting from one location to another. I'm excited that high-speed rail is coming despite the fact that I won't see it completed in my lifetime. I do travel on the San Joaquin route to visit family. And on the Coast Starlight to visit family. And on the Surfliner to visit friends. Please don't tell a person who has used trains and busses for decades what we are looking forward to seeing. (Foreigner ? Shaking head. 🫨)

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

@@mariegarside8830 fair enough. It's still Caltrain. lol

@mariegarside8830

Ай бұрын

@neutrino78x Okay 👍 Caltrain. I've been advocating for trains and public transportation since the 1960's. That's years ago.

Chicago to Toronto, at least twice a day....one via Detroit/Windsor, one via Port Huron/Sarnia....distance is aboiut 580km/375mi....driving time is about 6-9 hours

This is why us in Florida love Brightline. Would like to see Houston/Dallas/San Antonio Vancouver/Seattle/Portland Las Vegas/Salt Lake City New Orleans/Jacksonville

I live in Atlanta as well I would like to see a route between atlanta to Savannah, Atlanta to Charlotte Atlanta to Nashville Atlanta to Orlando. Atlanta to birmingham and new orleans

I know its a longer trip but FLA to VA would be really GREAT !

I would stick with the Coast Starlight. But I may be the exception -- when I ride a long-distance train, the train ride *is* my vacation. I want to enjoy it. I'm not usually going to Seattle or Chicago for the city, I'm going there because that's where they make me get off the train.

Provided that CAHSR & Cascadia HSR get completed/build, I would like to see a HSR route between Eugene OR & Sacramento CA, connecting the two systems. Electric, High Speed Trains from Vancouver BC to San Diego CA.

The problem is not the rolling stock. The problem is getting the rights of way and laying down new tracks to support 200 mph trains. Our rail lines presently in use are all pretty much the same as they were in the late 19th century. Mostly built for trains that seldom exceeded 80 mph.

It is about time!

❤❤❤! Ty

I would love NYC to Chicago via Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Columbus and maybe Indianapolis. While they’re at it, I would absolutely love it if they built high platforms in Pittsburgh! Finally, (I’m not sure which city pair this would connect because I haven’t made it very far in the book) somebody needs to build the John Galt Line!

Would love to see high speed train between New York and Florida. It is a distance of 1,147 miles and at 220mph it would only take 5 hours! I am curios what you do for a living to afford so much travel. I wish I had the time and the money.

An interesting fun fact since Rob said that Americans have not decided on high-speed rail. When the 1964 Tokyo Olympics opened, the Tokaido Shinkansen opened alongside. There’s a famous moment in 1864 when a helicopter is showing one the inaugural runs, and the train started out running the helicopter; evidently erupted from households all over Japan. It was after that point, Japan had decided Bullet trains were their transportation option of choice. it also made ripple effects around the world, countries like Britain, France, Germany, and even the United States all signed bills to invest in rail in the mid 60s. When the Brightline project gets to show off what they’ve done in 2028, it will change the American mindset and states will be clamoring to have high speed rail between their city pairs.

@neutrino78x

Ай бұрын

The problem is, our city clusters are greater than 200 miles apart. So you could have it say in the Texas Triangle or the NEC, but if you want to from the NEC to the Texas Triangle, no train is fast enough for that. So it doesn't eliminate aircraft by any stretch of the imagination. We already don't fly if the distance is less than 200 miles, so no change there.

I'm near Cincinnati and since Amtrak's hub is Chicago a high speed train between those two cities would be great! Unfortunately there is really nothing going to the South of us so a high speed between Cincinnati and Knoxville would be nice (or even a regular Amtrak!) We like to go to Charleston, SC a lot but I no longer like to fly. (My legs cannot take the crammed seats in coach anymore.) If we could get a train to Knoxville it would cut our drive in half. We would have no problem renting a car to continue the trip to Charleston. Trying to take a train from Cincy to Charleston SC would take us freaking forever.

I'm from CA. Which would I prefer overnight std train or high speed train to travel between SF & LA? Both! I am eagerly awaiting CA HST. With Europe's success with Nightjet, having that as an option would be great too. Keep in mind, SF to LA leg and the reverse on Coast Starlight are during daylight hours.

Japan! I am fascinated by the Japanese fairies that people can ride and get rooms for over night trips. Some are just the capsules all the way up to suites.

Raleigh NC to Pontiac Michigan. Raleigh NC to Tampa Florida.

Yeah, if I want to get from LA to San Francisco or vice versa, I don't see why I wouldn't choose to go high-speed, especially if the HS train still offers some good scenery. The view would be the only reason that I would want to take the Coast Starlight within California.

Milwaukee, Chicago, St Louis would be ideal for highspeed rail.

I’d love to see St. Louis to Indianapolis and Palm Springs California to Los Angeles. I know that Amtrak has that but the times are extremely inconvenient and it would be nice if there was even a commuter train between Palm Springs and Los Angeles.

The Brightline train west would travel from Las Vegas NV to Rancho Cucamonga not directly to Los Angeles. The train would drop passengers off in Rancho Cucamonga then Southern Caltrans to LA.

Thank you so much for your excellent content. This is FANTASTIC news! I lived in Asia and loved high speed train service. I am excited to have it in the US.

Amtrak is not above closing routes. I used to ride the Silver Comet as a kid from DC to Athens, Ga. Route is gone, and if I want to visit family I have to get off in Gainesville. This is what will happen when Amtrak realigns their routes when high speed rail comes online.

For retirees with time to spare but on a tight budget, a train like the Coast Starlight could still be a viable option if the price were significantly lower than a similarly routed high-speed train.

I know you guys have ridden the rails in the US A LOT, so I can understand that you are less intrigued by slow train travel by now. But in my experience talking with long-distance Amtrak customers on board, it seems to me that most of them are there for the experience, as well as perhaps wanting to get somewhere. I'm sure, at first, many will want to try out the high-speed trains when they come online. But I wonder if many won't migrate back to low-speed Amtrak. I guess we'll see!

I'm thinking the Dallas-Houston route could make it easier to cruise when starting from DFW. Train to Houston rather than flight. Robert in NYC.

I still want to do a sleeper train from Orlando to NY. But I find it to expensive.

Atlanta to Orlando would be fabulous. Actually, Atlanta to anywhere would be wonderful.

@mariegarside8830

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One problem for the Atlanta to Charlotte route is it passes through areas that are deeply opposed to any type of passive operation system (a system that would slow trains headed toward each other on single track. FRA has a mandate that the passive operation system be part of single track routes.

For this to work we'll have to reinvent several things: 1) passenger expectations of rail travel; 2) dedicated track with zero grade crossings; 3) reliability (see #1); and 4) routing sanity (aka routes driven by passenger load/speed and not Senator SoAndSo who wants a stop in some stupid place). I'd love to see all this happen and reserve the right to remain optimistic. We shall see! Thanks for the update.

Atlanta to Chicago!

Omaha to Denver ❤

Atlanta to Miami would be great without going to the coast. That 75 corridor is a beast.

I don't know the details of the "competing" sleeper train to the Coast Starlight but I can tell you who it might appeal to (IF it is offset by say roughly 12 hours from the Coats Starlight). If I were a businessman who needed to spend a full workday in say LA and the next full workday in SF I could see being able to sleep much of the trip (and avoid either a late flight or a late HS rail run) and be in SF first thing in the morning relaxed, fed -- I'd take the slower sleeper. It's similar to the argument I gave my DC bosses on not catching a "red-eye" back from the west coast. I can finish my trip report in a hotel and be back in the office by noon rather than fly overnight (I don't sleep well on aircraft and the government would only pay for sardine can coach) and be totally shot the next day and not even be able to get my trip report complete until late afternoon.

Tampa to Atlanta would be great,!

I want a St. Louis to DC direct train. Going through Chicago is so unnecessary. Oh, without a doubt I'd still want to do sleeper cars for the experience, especially if it was a coast to coast NY-LA with one stop in the middle--not Chicago--to refuel. I'd love for the US to finally leave the late 19th century when it comes to passenger rail service.

Please, anything to get me thru Iowa fast!

Denver/Dallas, Denver/ El Paso, Denver/Billings, Denver/Salt Lake City, Salt Lake City/ Boise/Portland, Boise/Spokane, Las Vegas/ Salt Lake City, you build it, they will ride it.

How is Amtrak going to use the Japanese equipment? When it was Texas Central they could because they were using federal funding. But if it’s Amtrak, they’ll need to meet Buy America requirements.

I rode the Shinkansen in Japan in 1999. It was much more expensive than the regular buses and subways that the majority of residents were using to get around. Maybe that has changed over the past 25 years, but at that time it was a luxury transport. Price will determine whether people will be willing to give up the freedom of their cars for alternate transport, or if the high speed trains will be simply a luxury, bucket list novelty.

Actually Amtrak is planning on making Atlanta a hub, hopefully legislature makes this happen

Did my first train travel the last few years. Liked it but just too slow. I’d like to see trains for Memphis to Nashville. I’m in Philadelphia so anything traveling from there would be great.

Central northern CA to San Diego or Las Vegas

New Orleans to Atlanta.

Traveling so fast did you experience nausea or dizziness while looking out windows? How is it taken pictures, are they blurry?

Okay totally off topic here but, have you thought about taking the new “slow” train in Turkey? Over 1KM long The Mesopotamia Express?

Chicago-->Minneapolis. The traffic in both cities is awful so it wouldn't help that but there have been times where the state of Wisconsin has been a traffic jam due to a ton of construction. I'd also like to see regular trains going from Canada to the US out west. It would be nice to not have to go all the way to Toronto to go back west to Chicago and to have to pay Via prices for the privilege. Train or even a bus shuttle back and forth even once a week with a connection at the border so that both companies can control their own interests in this.

Chicago to NYC!! And…Chicago to St Louis!!

How is Atlanta to Orlando not on this list?