Among the driving forces behind the efforts for RAIL Solution is the importance of protecting the environment and our land from the ever expanding transportation infrastructure. So long as we continue to rely on highways, oil, trucks and automobiles for people and freight transportation, we will put our environment, and in fact our health, in jeopardy.
Climate Change Policies:
A September 2013 article by Bruce McFarling in the Sunday Train delves into the argument and rationale for creating a Steel Interstate rail system to help moderate the effects of global climate change, peak oil and
ever increasing traffic congestion and land use.
His article Rapid Rail and Pedal to the Metal Climate Change Policy (part 1) mentions “The Steel Interstate as a Front-Runner Project“ for policy change.
He points out,
“To recap on the “story thus far”: the Steel Interstate is a project to establish a national system of electrified freight
rail corridors for long haul freight. The target is to replace long-haul diesel truck movements with long-haul electric freight train movements. This offers a double energy efficiency, since train freight offers over three times the energy efficiency of truck freight, and electric trains powered by overhead catanary [sic] offers over three times the energy efficiency of diesel trains. The end result is therefore under one-tenth the energy consumption per ton-mile.”
McFarling follows up on this with a conversation about “Rapid Passenger Rail” as a front-runner in
Sunday Train: Rapid Rail and Pedal to the Metal Climate Change Policy (part 2).
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