America’s first bullet train is already a failure and it hasn’t even been built (Texas)

[endicom]

The Hill
Travis Korson
Dec. 4, 2017

As we mark three-years since the unveiling of one of the most ambitious high-speed rail projects currently proposed in America, Texas Central Partner’s bullet train, its becoming clear that many of the assertions made about the project are way off track.

The 240-mile line promises to whisk riders from Houston to Dallas in less than 90 minutes with convenient departures every 30 minutes to an hour for a price comparable to that of a plane ticket. Backers of the project assert that all funding will come from the private sector and that rider demand will be sufficient to sustain operations without any taxpayer support. They point to a list of “infrastructure priorities” as proof that there is broad support for high-speed rail in Texas and that the Lone Star State is a prime location to introduce the first line in the country.

In reality, these claims do not hold up under scrutiny, and the project appears to quickly be going off the rails.

More... http://thehill.com/opinion/technology/363141-americas-first-bullet-train-is-already-a-failure-and-it-hasnt-even-been

[thackney]

I like reading:

...Despite Texas Central Partner’s promise that they have no plans to take state money the Texas Legislature took the extraordinary step this last session of codifying that promise and passing Senate Bill 977. The law, signed by Gov. Abbott this past May, stipulates that “the legislature may not appropriate money to pay for a cost of planning, facility construction or maintenance, or security for, promotion of, or operation of” the railway....

[endicom]

I like reading:

...Despite Texas Central Partner’s promise that they have no plans to take state money the Texas Legislature took the extraordinary step this last session of codifying that promise and passing Senate Bill 977. The law, signed by Gov. Abbott this past May, stipulates that “the legislature may not appropriate money to pay for a cost of planning, facility construction or maintenance, or security for, promotion of, or operation of” the railway....

There's much to like in that reading.

[Sanguine]

It would go right by my little place. 

[RoosGirl]

Maybe 15 years ago now, the engineering company i was working for was chin deep in working on the first bullet train in the US that would have gone from the Port Canaveral area to the Disney area.  It was going to be a huge tourist attraction and pay for itself.  The VPs were all excited about it, their wives were all excited about it, because they all decided they needed to go on a trip to Germany to see a real one.  Obviously that project went no where.  No telling how much company money they wasted on all their nonsense.  It was a great lesson for a young engineer.

[Bigun]

I like reading:

...Despite Texas Central Partner’s promise that they have no plans to take state money the Texas Legislature took the extraordinary step this last session of codifying that promise and passing Senate Bill 977. The law, signed by Gov. Abbott this past May, stipulates that “the legislature may not appropriate money to pay for a cost of planning, facility construction or maintenance, or security for, promotion of, or operation of” the railway....

But does it also bar the taking of a great deal of currently taxable land off the tax roles? 

[Cyber Liberty]

Maybe 15 years ago now, the engineering company i was working for was chin deep in working on the first bullet train in the US that would have gone from the Port Canaveral area to the Disney area.  It was going to be a huge tourist attraction and pay for itself.  The VPs were all excited about it, their wives were all excited about it, because they all decided they needed to go on a trip to Germany to see a real one.  Obviously that project went no where.  No telling how much company money they wasted on all their nonsense.  It was a great lesson for a young engineer.

Sounds like it was a great junket!

[IsailedawayfromFR]

They did not even cite the threat of thousands of wild hogs hit along the tracks.  If they prevented them with fences, then the enviro nuts out of Austin would have blasted them for not allowing wildlife the freedom of movement, ala Alaska pipeline.

[thackney]

They did not even cite the threat of thousands of wild hogs hit along the tracks.  If they prevented them with fences, then the enviro nuts out of Austin would have blasted them for not allowing wildlife the freedom of movement, ala Alaska pipeline.

Alaskan trains throw moose and caribou into trees.  I would hope a Texas train could properly launch without damage a good size hog.

[driftdiver]

Alaskan trains throw moose and caribou into trees.  I would hope a Texas train could properly launch without damage a good size hog.

Good chance it would cause a high speed train problems.   The hog would certainly die but so would the train passengers.

[driftdiver]

There's much to like in that reading.

So they passed a law saying to couldnt fund it.  Couldnt they pass another law to allow it?

[thackney]

Good chance it would cause a high speed train problems.   The hog would certainly die but so would the train passengers.

The bottom 4 feet of the front of the train need not be built of lightweight carbon fiber.  The nose can easily be built with some strength.  It is not a design problem, only a cost.

[Cyber Liberty]

So they passed a law saying to couldnt fund it.  Couldnt they pass another law to allow it?

Sure, I guess.  They'd need to get it through the legislature and get a Governor who will sign it, just like any other appropriation.  Could be a few political suicides to get it done.

[Bigun]

It seems that everyone is, at least thus far, ignoring the elephant in the room.  How much currently taxable land would have to be condemned and removed from the tax rolls for this project to proceed?

[Sanguine]

It seems that everyone is, at least thus far, ignoring the elephant in the room.  How much currently taxable land would have to be condemned and removed from the tax rolls for this project to proceed?

@Bigun, I don't want a damned train ripping through my quiet and bucolic little piece of the world either.

[Cyber Liberty]

@Bigun, I don't want a damned train ripping through my quiet and bucolic little piece of the world either.

Look at the bright side....it'll keep the hogs swept off the track...

(There is no bright side, really.  I'd hate like heck to have one of those things blasting through.)

[Bigun]

@Bigun, I don't want a damned train ripping through my quiet and bucolic little piece of the world either.

@Sanguine

You ain't the only one!  And why should we allow eminent domain to be used for private projects?

[thackney]

@Sanguine

You ain't the only one!  And why should we allow eminent domain to be used for private projects?

Because it is public Access.  Same as power lines and pipelines.

[Bigun]

Because it is public Access.  Same as power lines and pipelines.

Even if the public overwhelmingly doesn't want the damned thing and especially don't want THEIR taxes to go up in order to build something they do not want!

[endicom]

Look at the bright side....it'll keep the hogs swept off the track...

Who gets sued when what's left of your dog goes through someone's window?

[Cyber Liberty]

Who gets sued when what's left of your dog goes through someone's window?

I think they were talking about wild Hogs.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Alaskan trains throw moose and caribou into trees.  I would hope a Texas train could properly launch without damage a good size hog.

Isn't there some difference in hitting an animal at 50 mph vs 200 mph?  No Alaska bullet trains, so I wonder what a 200 mph hit on a moose might do to the train?

[thackney]

Isn't there some difference in hitting an animal at 50 mph vs 200 mph?  No Alaska bullet trains, so I wonder what a 200 mph hit on a moose might do to the train?

Also a big difference in hitting a moose versus a hog.

It seems silly to believe that it cannot be designed to withstand the impact. 

Might have to go old school:

 

Will it be designed that way another question.

However, for a high speed comparison:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9255394/Passengers-in-tears-after-train-hits-herd-of-cows.html

Passengers were left “in tears” after a high-speed train hit a herd of a dozen cattle, leaving “a lot of blood” spilled....

“Everyone including driver is ok. People saw a vehicle and a lot of blood... We're being assured it was a herd of cattle. Felt like we'd derailed.”

He added it felt as if the train had “dragged a vehicle under us for a good mile or so” after the incident, which he said involved "10-12" cows.

[thackney]

The wandering topic has made this old joke germane to the conversation:

In an issue of Meat & Poultry magazine, editors quoted from “Feathers,” the publication of the California Poultry Industry Federation, telling the following story:

The US Federal Aviation Administration has a unique device for testing the strength of windshields on airplanes. The device is a gun that launches a dead chicken at a plane’s windshield at approximately the speed the plane flies.

The theory is that if the windshield doesn’t crack from the carcass impact, it’ll survive a real collision with a bird during flight.

It seems the British were very interested in this and wanted to test a windshield on a brand new, speedy locomotive they’re developing.

They borrowed FAA’s chicken launcher, loaded the chicken and fired.

The ballistic chicken shattered the windshield, broke the engineer’s chair and embedded itself in the back wall of the engine’s cab. The British were stunned and asked the FAA to recheck the test to see if everything was done correctly.

The FAA reviewed the test thoroughly and had one recommendation:

“Use a thawed chicken.”

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Also a big difference in hitting a moose versus a hog.

It seems silly to believe that it cannot be designed to withstand the impact. 

Might have to go old school:

 

Will it be designed that way another question.

However, for a high speed comparison:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9255394/Passengers-in-tears-after-train-hits-herd-of-cows.html

Passengers were left “in tears” after a high-speed train hit a herd of a dozen cattle, leaving “a lot of blood” spilled....

“Everyone including driver is ok. People saw a vehicle and a lot of blood... We're being assured it was a herd of cattle. Felt like we'd derailed.”

He added it felt as if the train had “dragged a vehicle under us for a good mile or so” after the incident, which he said involved "10-12" cows.

Can't go too much in the way of old school if one wishes a streamlined speedy train.  Aerodynamics still have to be considered to get that 200mph