The US Rail Network is beset with myriad problems ranging from a crumbling rail infrastructure, discontent amongst rail workers, insufficient federal government funding and accumulation of deferred expenditures such as depreciation. Rail infrastructure include tracks and repair yards. The rail network in the United States is predominantly overshadowed by nearly 140,000 miles which exclusively transports freight.

Courtesy Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) operates over a 21,400-mile network and owns approximately 623 miles of track. Its revenue for the fiscal year 2022 was slightly in excess of $ 2 billion and carried more then 22 million passengers. Amtrak is subsidised by the federal and state governments. Rail tracks are largely owned by freight companies and contrary to many countries passenger trains defer to freight services which cause delay in arrivals. Such delays dissuade passengers who invariably resort to cheaper and reliable travel through air or road.

Market Appetite

Courtesy The Guardian

The present US market size in revenue terms reaches $ 110 bn whereas the growth rate of the rail transportation industry in the US is expected to decline by around 3 % this year. At one stage the US had a high per-capita rate of railway usage for public transportation utilisation than Germany however, by the year 2010 Germany’s per – capita use of public transport exceeded that of the US by seven times. What is alarming is that massive carbonisation is caused by automobiles as on an average a passenger vehicle emits  404 g of carbon dioxide (CO2)/mile while a train emits 66 g of CO2/mile.

Infrastructure Costs

Courtesy California High Speed Rail Authority

In the state of California, a high speed rail project is encountering delays and cost overruns. The 520 mile rail route in its entirety will cost around $ 100 billion out of which $ 20 billion is for 120 miles of flat land and $ 80 billion is for 400 miles of mountainous territory which works out to $ 200 million/mile for hilly regions. Cost overruns are typical globally .The UK’s 345 ​mile long London to Scotland high‐​speed rail line , originally projected to cost Sterling Pounds 32.7 billion (averaging $ 123 million/miles) shot up to Sterling Pounds 106 billion ($ 400 million/mile)

Maintenance Costs

Courtesy USA Today

Once constructed  high ​speed rail systems require expensive maintenance. Capital renewal requirements include replacement of rails and trainsets after a decade of service and passenger revenues are unlikely to even meet operating costs.Amtrak’s  maintenance backlog has reached almost $ 52 billion if depreciation is factored in.

Stark Realities

Neglected rail tracks recently caused a derailment on account of a mechanical defect after a rail car axle failure. Eleven cars of vinyl chloride , a substance known to possess carcinogenic properties, spilled in East Palestine,Ohio. Due to safety concerns the hazardous liquid was vented and burned in a controlled manner.Despite freight and passenger rail being part of the US  integrated logistic system the passenger rail category faces daunting challenges. Freight manages to remain financially robust and maintain a resilient network largely as shippers of cargoes ranging from liquid fuel to coal invest, on an average, $ 260,000/mile. On the other hand passenger transportation has been plagued by inconsistency in federal support. What is sorely needed now is a strong political push at federal as well as state level to upgrade the rail infrastructure, make it cost efficient and also restore it as a preferred public transport system.

 

 

By Nadir Mumtaz

Courtesy Sources;

https://www.eesi.org/articles/view/off-the-rails-how-america-can-revitalize-its-railroads

 

https://www.cato.org/policy-analysis/high-speed-money-sink-why-united-states-should-not-spend-trillions-obsolete#high-speed-rail-too-expensive

 

https://infrastructurereportcard.org/cat-item/rail-infrastructure/#:~:text=Our%20nation’s%20rail%20network%20is,also%20known%20as%20host%20track