The rest of the world is leaving America behind

Aoxomoxoa said:
High speed trains are investments in infrastructure, apart from toll roads are highways expected to pay for themselves?
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I do believe that is what the gas tax is for. Thereby taxing those that use the roads to pay for their upgrades/expansions. If you want to tax those that use the rail to pay for it, I have no problem with that occurring.

That said, the gas tax here has been stuck at the same level since the mid 1990's. It needs to be adjusted for inflation over that time. Otherwise it cannot fund infrastructure needs for Roads/Bridges and thus is subsidized to a degree.
 
Superfreak said:
I do believe that is what the gas tax is for. Thereby taxing those that use the roads to pay for their upgrades/expansions. If you want to tax those that use the rail to pay for it, I have no problem with that occurring.

That said, the gas tax here has been stuck at the same level since the mid 1990's. It needs to be adjusted for inflation over that time. Otherwise it cannot fund infrastructure needs for Roads/Bridges and thus is subsidized to a degree.
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Is the gas tax hypothecated or is it like road tax in the UK where it is just a source of general revenue? I believe that there is a huge long term structural deficit between the cost of road maintenance and anticipated gas tax revenue. Many roads and bridges are reaching their expiration date because they were built during the construction boom of the 50s/60s. So this is a good time to consider removing as much freight and private traffic off the roads.
 
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Mott the Hoople said:
We get the money from the American people. How do we convince them? We tell them that we need to invest in American to make it competitive and to be competive we need to modernize our nations infrastructre and that this would be a sound investment in our future and what better investment can you make then in America?
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no you don't. you threaten them with a gang carrying guns.
 
Superfreak said:
I do believe that is what the gas tax is for. Thereby taxing those that use the roads to pay for their upgrades/expansions. If you want to tax those that use the rail to pay for it, I have no problem with that occurring.

That said, the gas tax here has been stuck at the same level since the mid 1990's. It needs to be adjusted for inflation over that time. Otherwise it cannot fund infrastructure needs for Roads/Bridges and thus is subsidized to a degree.
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Your aerospace industry is government subsidised by the spending on the military and NASA.
 
Superfreak said:
Question.... do our existing rails qualify for use by a bullet train? If not, what do you propose we do with our current shipping via train while we tear up old tracks and put in new? When done by unions that type of project could last a couple dozen decades.
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My reponse concerned the availabilty of land, not the technical difficults of a massive infrastructure.
Other countries have managed to install them, we should be able to do it better.
The ends are so worth the means if air travel can be reduced.
 
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Damocles said:
High speed rail will very likely (at the very least) be heavily subsidized so that it can compete with air travel in pricing otherwise it will fail, it is not cost effective to build and maintain high speed railways when air travel is so much cheaper for personal travel. Rails are best used for freight if you want cost effectiveness, and speed is usually not all that urgent for freight.
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It is urgent enough for everything shipped air freight.
Further the cost is lower than air both enviromentally as well as monetarily.
That is whole point.
 
Return of Dune said:
It is urgent enough for everything shipped air freight.
Further the cost is lower than air both enviromentally as well as monetarily.
That is whole point.
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DUNE AND HIS CHOPPER
biking-ballerina.jpg
 
Aoxomoxoa said:
Why is it any different to Compulsory Purchase Orders? You can appeal in court but if it goes against you then you're out. This is particularly poignant now as the arguments start about the route for HS2. On the subject of rabbits, I wasn't aware that there were no rabbits in the US. Isn't Bugs Bunny a wabbit?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HS2

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbits_USA
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Compulsory purchase orders may be considered unfair by the owner sometimes, but there is compensation and there is due process. No one has 'stolen' anything. That was my original point. I'm sure you are as aware as I am of the farm between the east bound and the west bound lanes of the M62.
The original point was made as a 'dig' against their present administration and not about trains at all. Funny how other countries find high speed rail advantageous on so many levels but America doesn't.
Like the mother watching her son march by on the way to war who said, 'Look, all the soldiers are out of step except my liitle Johnny.'
On the question of rabbits in the US I may be wrong (again) but as far as I am aware the US has 'Jack rabbits' which are, in fact, hares. They probably have little fluffy bunnies too now due to the propensity of parents world wide to give pets to their offspring.
A rabbit is not just for Christmas! True. A good big one could last til Boxing Day with some nice roasties and baby sprouts.
 
Alias said:
Love your "chopper".
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I ride a 1956 BMW R-60 with an Earles leading link front suspension,
shaft drive and interchangable front, rear, and sidecar wheels.
I have owned it for 29 years.
I also ocasionaly own Harleys. ( had six, none at present).

The article explains the Earles suspension, shaft drive and interchangable wheels.
I was also fortunate that my bike came with the rare "double wide bench seat" with chromed passenger handgrips.
It is totaly stock except for stainless steel instead of chrome plated spokes. If I didn't tell you, you likely wouldn't know.

Amazingly, new parts are still available from BMW.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMW_R60/2
 
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Lowaicue said:
Compulsory purchase orders may be considered unfair by the owner sometimes, but there is compensation and there is due process. No one has 'stolen' anything. That was my original point. I'm sure you are as aware as I am of the farm between the east bound and the west bound lanes of the M62.
The original point was made as a 'dig' against their present administration and not about trains at all. Funny how other countries find high speed rail advantageous on so many levels but America doesn't.
Like the mother watching her son march by on the way to war who said, 'Look, all the soldiers are out of step except my liitle Johnny.'
On the question of rabbits in the US I may be wrong (again) but as far as I am aware the US has 'Jack rabbits' which are, in fact, hares. They probably have little fluffy bunnies too now due to the propensity of parents world wide to give pets to their offspring.
A rabbit is not just for Christmas! True. A good big one could last til Boxing Day with some nice roasties and baby sprouts.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cottontail_rabbit
 
Aoxomoxoa said:
There are many benefits to rail, less freight traffic on the roads, less consumption of oil and less pollution are but a few.
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I agree, there are many benefits. Freight by rail is far more cost affective. There's a lot of things in our infrastructure that need work. Roads, Bridges, railbeds, the electrical grid, hydroelectric out west, etc.
 
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