Southeast Transit/Commuter Rail/HSR Thread

[GunnerJacket]

The streetcar in Atlanta is being roundly panned by many critics, and I'll admit the particular corridor seems soft. I'm hopefuly for it's success, but not prepared to wager on that.

We do need more such options within burgeoning cities, though, as people tend to react much more favorably to smaller, fixed routed. The free shuttle buses running their loops around Chattanooga, for example, don't get near the same fear and hesitation that a traditional passenger bus, so hopefully this type of transit service will get more folks moving in Atlanta.

As for the larger HSR effort, I think there simply needs to be steady investment in the simple straightening and double tracking of the existing network. Right now it takes an overnight run to get from Atlanta to DC, no shorter than driving. A lot of that is the myriad of turns and bends that prohibit even slightly higher speeds, scattered throughout the route. Currently there are no plans for "smoothing the lines," just maintaining the norm, and that's foolish. Little investments here and there can eventually add up to 10 minutes shaved here, 15 minutes there. Eventually we can be at higher speeds that reduce the trip by hours.

There also needs to be a greater push for coordination (competition) with air travel. We'll always need air service but it's become too costly to run shorter flights, which is exactly where rail can be most effective. If we can get one of NC or FL to show ANY improvements in passenger service, I've little doubt that will start the dominoes for GA and the rest of the southeast:

- Upgrade the access and service between Raleigh and DC, then the rest of NC will be even more vested.
- Get anything going from Orlando to Miami
- With bookeneds in place GA and Atlanta will press even harder to get on board, rather than be bypassed. Plus it would alleviate the growing demand for a 2nd, national-level airport.