May 12, 2010

High-Speed Rail Systems

They are the fastest around,
Much better than the rest,
They allow Earth to rebound,
High-speed rails are the best!

Let the Jets Rest

In an age where one may have a lunch meeting in San Francisco followed by a dinner presentation in Los Angeles, we need to find more efficient and less polluting modes of transportation than airplane travel. One idea that has already found success and widespread support is the creation of high-speed rail systems.

• Advantages of a High-Speed Rail - High-speed rail systems may be expensive but they are necessary to meet the increasing demands for human mobility, to free up existing lines for freight travel, and to promote energy security and sustainability.
• France - France's high-speed TGV travels 250 miles from Paris to Lyon in only 2 hours. This is a distance equal to that between Boston and Philadelphia, a trip that currently takes 5 hours aboard the Amtrak train.
• China - China has already built 4,000 miles of high-speed rail featuring trains that travel at average speeds of greater than 120 mph and the country plans to construct 10,000 more miles of track to connect all of China's major cities by 2020.
• United States - The White House has announced the allocation of $8 million of stimulus funding to take the first steps in creating high-speed rail system projects and improve the service in 13 corridors across the country. Two major projects are underway in both California and Florida.

TIME explores high-speed rail systems in America.

The White House explains the allocation of the stimulus funds for high-speed rails.