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Posted

We're in preliminary bidding stage as a subcontractor, and have been working with the powers that be for several months on cost projections for the drill shaft portion.  This thing is going to be a beast.

Posted
at least you won't have to deal with recliners eating up your leg room and closing your laptop:
Screen-Shot-2020-02-18-at-2.00.00-PM.png
https://www.dmagazine.com/business-economy/2020/02/first-look-texas-high-speed-train-interiors/
I have been on the 303 km/hr train out of Shanghai a few times and it rocks. Laptop room and a place for a water bottle. Bottle never moves.

Love to see how these high speed trains dodge deer and pigs in december at 9p around centerville, that's the engineering feat that will amaze me. Maybe a 20 foot wedge designed by Ranch Hand?
Posted
7 hours ago, markstanco said:

I have been on the 303 km/hr train out of Shanghai a few times and it rocks. Laptop room and a place for a water bottle. Bottle never moves.

Love to see how these high speed trains dodge deer and pigs in december at 9p around centerville, that's the engineering feat that will amaze me. Maybe a 20 foot wedge designed by Ranch Hand?

What do they do for wildlife protection in China?  Or is everything that moves over there eaten so it's not really a problem?

  • Like 1
Posted

We just to start getting this built. People seem to have strong opinions about whether true high speed rail can work in the US or not, especially outside of the NE corridor.this is a great test in which a private company wants to fund it.

Yes some landowners will be negatively impacted but I’m sure landowners were negatively impacted with interstates or airports. I also understand that the rail company isn’t looking to pay pennies on the dollar for land. Instead they want to pay top dollar to avoid drawn out fights.

The probable upside of this project dwarfs the certain downside.

  • Like 3
Posted
35 minutes ago, Hate said:

What do they do for wildlife protection in China?  Or is everything that moves over there eaten so it's not really a problem?

I bet a lot of it is fenced.  I know in Japan they found deer were attacked to the iron filings left behind to help their diet, so thought I’d read they were putting supplement stations nearby.  Either way I’m sure it gets exciting real fast. 

Posted
3 hours ago, Hate said:

What do they do for wildlife protection in China?  Or is everything that moves over there eaten so it's not really a problem?

Hopefully fenced with wildlife tunnels or bridges like you see for interstates in Colorado.

  • Like 1
Posted
11 hours ago, markstanco said:

I have been on the 303 km/hr train out of Shanghai a few times and it rocks. Laptop room and a place for a water bottle. Bottle never moves.

Love to see how these high speed trains dodge deer and pigs in december at 9p around centerville, that's the engineering feat that will amaze me. Maybe a 20 foot wedge designed by Ranch Hand?

Quote

 The project will be “grade separated,” which means it will cross over or under all public roads and will have no intersections with people or vehicles, so there will be no cars waiting on trains to pass and no risk of trains interacting with cars.

From the Texas Central website.  I don't think wildlife will have the opportunity to get close to the tracks.  

Posted
13 minutes ago, Hate said:

There is no way that it will only take 6 years to build.

the spanish seem to know what the fuck they're doing (madrid - seville):

Quote

In December 1988 it was decided to build the new line in standard gauge. Construction was ordered on 16 March 1989, and it lasted for 33 months; actual construction activity lasted only 24 months. Commercial use of the line commenced on 21 April 1992.

 

 

  • Like 3
Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, elfenix said:

the spanish seem to know what the fuck they're doing (madrid - seville):

Rick Perry’s greatest aggy feat of engineering, the Trans-Texas Corridor, was going to use Spanish companies to build the corridor.   Interesting.   

Edited by atomheartbevo
Posted (edited)

Yeah, I've taken that train from Barcelona to Madrid.  It has a lot more elevation changes than between Houston and Dallas.  That's pretty amazing that they got that done so quickly. 

Edited by Hate
Posted
38 minutes ago, Kyle said:

I love trains. There is zero chance this boondoggle gets built. The state will bail out the "investors," and now one will speak of it again.

I fear you're right, but hope otherwise. High-speed rail is needed. We have cars and we have planes. There's no middle ground for travel. 

  • Like 1
Posted
13 minutes ago, RPM said:

I fear you're right, but hope otherwise. High-speed rail is needed. We have cars and we have planes. There's no middle ground for travel. 

Electric scooters.

  • Like 1
Posted
11 minutes ago, RPM said:

I fear you're right, but hope otherwise. High-speed rail is needed. We have cars and we have planes. There's no middle ground for travel. 

Again, I love trains. But it does not take a genius to do the math in one's head to realize this is not only not viable but literally impossible. Honestly, I question the mental acuity or sanity of anyone who actually thinks this is possible with private money. I mean, a first year McCombs student can build the NPV model that shows this is not happening.

They'll raise money, they'll spend it on consulting, and they might bulldoze a few trees. But it is never happening unless the government funds it.

Posted

Regional air isn't filling the gap. There are upscale bus lines, but speed/time is a problem. High speed rail from DFW in a 500 mile radius (don't limit it to Houston) would fill all kinds of travel need. Make regional hubs across the country to fill the need. We've developed an anti-rail attitude for some reason.

  • Like 1
Posted
15 minutes ago, RPM said:

Regional air isn't filling the gap. There are upscale bus lines, but speed/time is a problem. High speed rail from DFW in a 500 mile radius (don't limit it to Houston) would fill all kinds of travel need. Make regional hubs across the country to fill the need. We've developed an anti-rail attitude for some reason.

Probably blame the airlines, oil, and car companies for helping push that attitude.

Imagine high-speed rail between San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, Houston, and New Orleans.  

Oh, and throw in a stop in Lake Charles - 45 minutes or so from Houston to Lake Charles?  Those casinos should pay for that stretch alone, because a fuckton of people in Houston would hop on a high-speed train after work on a Friday, get off in Lake Charles, and head back home the same night or the next day.

Toss in a line to Galveston as well - if you could get people in Dallas down to Galveston in under 2 hours, without the stress of traffic in Dallas and Houston, there would be plenty of families who would do it.

  • Like 1
Posted
8 hours ago, Kyle said:

Again, I love trains. But it does not take a genius to do the math in one's head to realize this is not only not viable but literally impossible. Honestly, I question the mental acuity or sanity of anyone who actually thinks this is possible with private money. I mean, a first year McCombs student can build the NPV model that shows this is not happening.

They'll raise money, they'll spend it on consulting, and they might bulldoze a few trees. But it is never happening unless the government funds it.

Possibly. They definitely are not transparent on the numbers. However at some point they will have to start spending real money unless their goal is to knock down those few trees and ask the govt to take it from there.

Posted
14 hours ago, RPM said:

Regional air isn't filling the gap. There are upscale bus lines, but speed/time is a problem. High speed rail from DFW in a 500 mile radius (don't limit it to Houston) would fill all kinds of travel need. Make regional hubs across the country to fill the need. We've developed an anti-rail attitude for some reason.

I do not think there is an anti-rail attitude as much as it is an anti-boondoggle attitude. Just not efficient.

Posted

I’d love to have a viable train system in Texas and throughout the country. After going through Europe in trains, I’ve discovered it’s a wonderful way to travel. I prefer trains to airplanes for “short” trips.

  • Like 1
Posted
8 minutes ago, Hate said:

I’d love to have a viable train system in Texas and throughout the country. After going through Europe in trains, I’ve discovered it’s a wonderful way to travel. I prefer trains to airplanes for “short” trips.

Fundamentally, trains' efficiency declines while airplanes' efficiency increases. In a large country like the U.S., planes just make more sense. I love taking European trains - even the Italian rail is cool ... but Europe is the size of Texas.

Posted
Fundamentally, trains' efficiency declines while airplanes' efficiency increases. In a large country like the U.S., planes just make more sense. I love taking European trains - even the Italian rail is cool ... but Europe is the size of Texas.

???. France is roughly the size of Texas.
  • Like 3
Posted
8 minutes ago, Kyle said:

Fundamentally, trains' efficiency declines while airplanes' efficiency increases. In a large country like the U.S., planes just make more sense. I love taking European trains - even the Italian rail is cool ... but Europe is the size of Texas.

Um...no, it is not.

Posted
9 minutes ago, Kyle said:

Fundamentally, trains' efficiency declines while airplanes' efficiency increases. In a large country like the U.S., planes just make more sense. I love taking European trains - even the Italian rail is cool ... but Europe is the size of Texas.

Like all of Europe?  The whole darned thing?

Posted

I'm too lazy to look and have to get the kid to baseball ... does anyone know if any of the European rail systems break even? I know that no mass transit system in the U.S. does, but does any one in Europe?

 

Posted
2 hours ago, Kyle said:

I'm too lazy to look and have to get the kid to baseball ... does anyone know if any of the European rail systems break even? I know that no mass transit system in the U.S. does, but does any one in Europe?

 

Most receive subsidies because they provide a public benefit 

Posted
3 hours ago, Neonmoon said:

Americans are absolutely anti-rail 

This thread is littered with it 

Not all. NowThis loves trains being run.

  • Like 5
  • Haha 1
Posted
2 hours ago, Neonmoon said:

Most receive subsidies because they provide a public benefit 

That's why I don't think it's fair to say America is "anti-rail." It may be the America is anti wasting more tax dollars on unnecessary boondoggles ... that does not even consider the ridiculous capital needed for startup - buying the land alone likely could not be covered by a private investment ... much less capital to build the infrastructure. One can still love trains and not be "anti-rail" but still understand it is a foolish decision.

Posted
14 minutes ago, Kyle said:

That's why I don't think it's fair to say America is "anti-rail." It may be the America is anti wasting more tax dollars on unnecessary boondoggles ... that does not even consider the ridiculous capital needed for startup - buying the land alone likely could not be covered by a private investment ... much less capital to build the infrastructure. One can still love trains and not be "anti-rail" but still understand it is a foolish decision.

Thanks Kellyanne.

Posted
44 minutes ago, Kyle said:

That's why I don't think it's fair to say America is "anti-rail." It may be the America is anti wasting more tax dollars on unnecessary boondoggles ... that does not even consider the ridiculous capital needed for startup - buying the land alone likely could not be covered by a private investment ... much less capital to build the infrastructure. One can still love trains and not be "anti-rail" but still understand it is a foolish decision.

You think America is anti-wasting tax dollars on unnecessary boondoggles? What America do you live in? Hell, the military is one continuous example of burning money for no reason. You just want your tax dollars wasted on only things you wanted them wasted on, just like everyone else. 
 

 

  • Like 3
Posted

I think he’s saying Americans don’t like the $600 hammer thing. Yes, we Really do need the hammer and hopefully will put it to good use, but don’t try to tell us it has to cost $600 when there is another one just as good for $60.

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