JSmith
Service Attendant
So I suppose we can generally all agree that North America lags behind the rest of the developed world (and some of the developing world) when it comes to passenger rail, in terms of network comprehensiveness, train frequencies, etc. I am curious as to how other countries do things differently from the US and Canada. For the sake of this discussion, I'm not talking about dedicated HSR lines, but more conventional rail (up to, say, 125 mph). How does the British system, for example, compare to the US system? Is it the same in France and Germany?
For example, Amtrak and VIA are often delayed because of having to share tracks with freight trains. Do freights share the same tracks with passenger trains in Britain and Europe?
Amtrak doesn't own most of the tracks it runs on - they are owned by the freight companies, which often lack any incentive to make infrastructure improvements that would benefit Amtrak but not themselves. Who owns the British and European track infrastructure?
Amtrak is dispatched by the track owners (again, the freight companies). Who does the dispatching in Britain and Europe?
I understand that British trains are owned by multiple private companies, with National Rail acting as a coordinating association to simplify ticketing, scheduling, etc. Are most European train systems publicly-owned?
Finally, am I wrong in my understanding that VIA's "deal" is pretty much the same as Amtrak? VIA Rail is a government entity that owns and runs trains on tracks owned and controlled by freight companies?
For example, Amtrak and VIA are often delayed because of having to share tracks with freight trains. Do freights share the same tracks with passenger trains in Britain and Europe?
Amtrak doesn't own most of the tracks it runs on - they are owned by the freight companies, which often lack any incentive to make infrastructure improvements that would benefit Amtrak but not themselves. Who owns the British and European track infrastructure?
Amtrak is dispatched by the track owners (again, the freight companies). Who does the dispatching in Britain and Europe?
I understand that British trains are owned by multiple private companies, with National Rail acting as a coordinating association to simplify ticketing, scheduling, etc. Are most European train systems publicly-owned?
Finally, am I wrong in my understanding that VIA's "deal" is pretty much the same as Amtrak? VIA Rail is a government entity that owns and runs trains on tracks owned and controlled by freight companies?