I am usually sad when I return from an overseas trip where traveling by train depending on the country can be so effortless. In the US, even building a light rail from the airport to the city, let alone the suburbs is a challenge.
Short getaways from Los Angeles to Las Vegas really can only be done by car or plane. There's Greyhound and Flixbus, that can do it, but buses get stuck in traffic because of all the personal vehicles.
I'm not an urban planner, but I do read, listen to podcasts and watch a lot of videos from individuals that discuss urban planning through the lens of transportation and housing. A few of them are here, if you're interested.
I also like watching Bicycle Dutch on Youtube, because I love seeing how Dutch people prioritize bicycles as transportation instead of cars.
I don't do deep dives into the urban planning problems in North American like those listed above. What I do is, think where I want to travel in the US, and then see how viable it is to get there by train. And because I sometimes am glutting for punishment, I'll compare the train travel times in the US to another country with roughly the same distance. It can be sad.
A few years ago I took a train from Los Angeles to Chicago. Story is here. The distance is roughly 3200 km (2000 mi) and takes approximately 44 hours. A high speed train from Hong Kong to Beijing, roughly 2440 km (1500 mi) is 9 hours.
The US has no real high speed rail across the country. The Amtrak Acela, can reach a top speed of 241 km/h (150 mph) on certain stretches.
Brightline, a private company is looking to build a high speed train from Southern California to Las Vegas. But the stations in both Southern California and Vegas are not enticing enough for people to want to use it. If the project passes, the station in Vegas will terminate 2 miles south of The Strip. What am I going to do 2 miles south of The Strip? Transfer to a bus or call an Uber?
In California, the station is supposed to be in Rancho Cucamonga! A quick Google search says the population of Rancho Cucamonga is roughly 175,000 as of 2021. The city of Los Angeles has roughly 4,000,000!!!! Even Anaheim down in Orange County with a population of roughly 349,000 would be better because it can also attract residents that live in the surrounding area.
Several years back, I took the train from Los Angeles to San Diego and it took about 3.5-4hours for the 193 km (120 mi) trip. Again, Hong Kong to Beijing is 9hours and 2440 km (1500 mi) from each other.
I have also taken Amtrak between Portland Union Station and Seattle King St Station. The stations between these two cities are about 281 km (175 mi) apart. It took about 3.5hrs. There are four departures a day.
Compare that to taking the train from Brussels to Paris, which is roughly 312 km (193mi) apart. The Thalys high speed train runs about every hours or so, and can get you to your destination in about 1hr 22min.
I love traveling by train, but in the US, it can be frustrating because we under fund our public transit system. I am saying all this because, I am looking to take the Amtrak again from Los Angeles to San Diego in the coming months. Currently, the tracks south of Orange County are closed due to soil erosion, and it will take 2 transfers (train, bus, train) because of the erosion. I will see how it goes and write about it after my time there.
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