Gary Graves posted:Not exactly high speed, but Virgin Trains USA is under construction between WPB and Orlando and the 40 mile section between Orlando and Cocoa Beach will see 125 mph regularly. No crossings and precise new track enable the higher speeds and it should be fun to watch 125 mph trains zip past 70 mpg cars only 50 feet away.
BTW I'd love to get an O gauge model of the Virgin Trains or Brightline.
Trains don't really have to run 200 + mph to be high speed. The key would be get to 100 to 150 mph and staying there. The distance between downtown SF and LA is just over 300 miles. A train that left either city and ran non-stop at 150 mph would get to its destination in just over 2 hours (city center to city center).
This would be beat flying by at least 2 hours given travel time to and from the airport, security checks, etc. The flight time between Oakland and the LA Airport is 1 hour 10 minutes. The travel time between the LA Airport and downtown is 1/2 hour with light traffic and over an hour with normal heavy traffic. The security check at LA Airport from 15 minutes to over 2 hours depending on the day. I always plan to arrive at the LA airport at least 2 hours before flight boarding time. This means leaving for the airport 3 hours before my flight boarding time. NH Joe
