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Benefits Forgone: The Cost of Not Building Higher Performing Passenger Rail

Benefits Forgone: The Cost of Not Building Higher Performing Passenger Rail

Eric C. Peterson
Copyright: © 2016 |Pages: 28
ISBN13: 9781522501022|ISBN10: 1522501029|EISBN13: 9781522501039
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-0102-2.ch004
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MLA

Peterson, Eric C. "Benefits Forgone: The Cost of Not Building Higher Performing Passenger Rail." Emerging Challenges and Opportunities of High Speed Rail Development on Business and Society, edited by Raj Selladurai, et al., IGI Global, 2016, pp. 53-80. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0102-2.ch004

APA

Peterson, E. C. (2016). Benefits Forgone: The Cost of Not Building Higher Performing Passenger Rail. In R. Selladurai, P. Lee, & G. VandeWerken (Eds.), Emerging Challenges and Opportunities of High Speed Rail Development on Business and Society (pp. 53-80). IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0102-2.ch004

Chicago

Peterson, Eric C. "Benefits Forgone: The Cost of Not Building Higher Performing Passenger Rail." In Emerging Challenges and Opportunities of High Speed Rail Development on Business and Society, edited by Raj Selladurai, Peggy Daniels Lee, and George VandeWerken, 53-80. Hershey, PA: IGI Global, 2016. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-0102-2.ch004

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Abstract

By conservative, reliable, objective, and preliminary estimates, the United States could generate at least $660 million annually – $26.4 billion over four decades – by building and operating faster, more frequent, more dependable, and more highly integrated passenger rail service in four corridors: The Northeast; the Chicago Hub; California; and the Northwest. Numerous studies by a variety of national and international organizations and government agencies suggest that the actual cost of building and/or improving passenger rail service lines is significantly less than the cost per mile of other modal alternatives. In fact, in many corridors, passenger rail is the only feasible option for adding capacity, given the practical constraints facing aviation and highway expansion. Further, by integrating improved, higher speed intercity passenger rail service into the existing transportation system, major issues of congestion, mobility and economic inequality can be addressed.

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