C'mon ride the (high speed) train, hey, ride it, woo woo!

Discussion in 'Politics & Current Events' started by Michael K., Jan 28, 2010.

  1. chaski

    chaski Moderator
    Staff Member

    Mar 20, 2000
    redacted
    Club:
    Lisburn Distillery FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Guam
    Lots of folks will take the HSR to the Garlic Festival.
     
  2. American Brummie

    Jun 19, 2009
    There Be Dragons Here
    Club:
    Birmingham City FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Easy way to attract the NIMBYs to nuke them all from orbit
     
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  3. dapip

    dapip Member+

    Sep 5, 2003
    South Florida
    Club:
    Millonarios Bogota
    Nat'l Team:
    Colombia
    You mean something like this?

    [​IMG]
     
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  4. roadkit

    roadkit Greetings from the Fringe of Obscurity

    Club: San Diego FC
    Jul 2, 2003
    Fornax Cluster
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    [​IMG]
    More like this...
     
  5. Val1

    Val1 Moderator
    Staff Member

    Arsenal
    Mar 12, 2004
    MD's Eastern Shore
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    They could be giant misting stations...
     
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  6. Germerica

    Germerica Member+

    May 2, 2012
    SoCal burbs
    Club:
    Los Angeles
    $38.5 billion for a train from Merced to Bakersfield

    This is what California taxpayers need most of all.

     
  7. Germerica

    Germerica Member+

    May 2, 2012
    SoCal burbs
    Club:
    Los Angeles
  8. ceezmad

    ceezmad Member+

    Mar 4, 2010
    Chicago
    Club:
    Chicago Red Stars
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I talk shit about the MAGAs support of an anti democratic Trump.

    But Egypt is ruled by a strong man, they will probably get speed rail before California.





    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_Egypt


    I don't know, give me a Democrat dictatorship that will make building dense housing, build transmission lines, nuclear power and high speed rail all over the country and I may be in favor of such dear leader.
     
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  9. Funkfoot

    Funkfoot Member+

    May 18, 2002
    New Orleans, LA
  10. rslfanboy

    rslfanboy Member+

    Jul 24, 2007
    Section 26
    The hydrogen thing only really makes sense if you have nuclear or renewables to manufacture it. Honestly, if the process can be somewhat automated, it might make sense to produce and store hydrogen during peak solar events so as not to waste the excess energy, but I’m sure much smarter people than I have already looked into that.
     
  11. Homa

    Homa Member

    Feb 4, 2008
    Aachen
    Club:
    FC Schalke 04
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    I think hydrogen trains are as probable as hydrogen cars, basically they aren't. Bavaria seems to have a weird obsession with hydrogen over batteries, don't know why.

    Hydrogen for long time storage might become a thing, but the first and most important use case is hydrogen as a molecule to decarbonize chemical processes like steel or cement production.
     
  12. Funkfoot

    Funkfoot Member+

    May 18, 2002
    New Orleans, LA
    It's good that they have this weird obsession because now we can see if it works.
     
  13. song219

    song219 BigSoccer Supporter

    Apr 5, 2004
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Vanuatu
    Toyota went in on hydrogen some years ago and have had to abandon it.
     
  14. rslfanboy

    rslfanboy Member+

    Jul 24, 2007
    Section 26
    I think it shows that it is not good for cars and smaller infra. It might work for large works, like @Homa mentioned with metal smelting and cement, among many others. Shipping carriers and trains are a possible implementation too.
     
  15. song219

    song219 BigSoccer Supporter

    Apr 5, 2004
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Vanuatu
    I think this is basically right. I sometimes drive by a gas station in DC that put in hydrogen pumps as a demonstration project during Bush 43 first administration. There were DOE and other political types at the unveiling. The pumps were pulled a few years later.
     
  16. Yoshou

    Yoshou Fan of the CCL Champ

    May 12, 2009
    Seattle
    Club:
    Seattle Sounders
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Eh.. Comparing hydrogen fuel cells for cars and trains is not a fair comparison. The issue with hydrogen fuel cells for cars is the complete lack of a distribution network ("gas" stations). That problem does not exist for trains as they have a limited number of set points at which they can get refills. In fact, trains would be pretty ideal for a hydrogen fuel cell as you can build the hydrogen generation plants basically wherever they need to refuel the trains.
     
  17. Homa

    Homa Member

    Feb 4, 2008
    Aachen
    Club:
    FC Schalke 04
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    It is not only the lack of a distribution network which killed hydrogen cars, but the lack of (green) hydrogen itself. Both problems still exists for trains. And for trains there is already a proven and widely used alternative in the form of electricity.

    So sure you would need a smaller distribution system compared to cars, so the investment is less, but you would also have less upside because the only routes where hydrogen would be used, would be low traffic ones. Anything else has already been electrified (more than 60% of German railroads) making batteries and hydrogen useless.

    I would think that it would be easier for most of these low traffic routes to add some form of basic electrification, building on the already existing electric infrastructure (for trains and for other purposes), while using batteries to bridge the gaps, than building up an entirely new distribution system for a small number of hydrogen trains.

    Might be different for railway systems with a lower rate of electrification like the transcontinental lines in the US. But even then there are just so much better uses for green hydrogen. You can find a lot of examples in Liebreich's hydrogen ladder.
     
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  18. JBigjake

    JBigjake Member+

    Nov 16, 2003
    Here’s a peppy video to cheer you up!
     
  19. msilverstein47

    msilverstein47 Member+

    Jan 11, 1999
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    and here is something to make you depressed:

    Amtrak's busy Northeast Corridor bracing for 2026 World Cup - ESPN

    With the men's World Cup starting in June 2026, experts warn that the national rail system, already beleaguered by breakdowns and spotty service along the congested corridor, may not be up to the task.

    "You're going to add millions of people into that mix for a short period of time, and it's really going to crush capacity," said Jim Mathews, president and CEO of the Rail Passengers Association, a nonprofit organization that advocates for rail use.
     
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  20. msilverstein47

    msilverstein47 Member+

    Jan 11, 1999
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    VIA Rail Canada
    • 2 days ago

      The Canada Strong Pass is here!
      As Canada’s national rail passenger service, VIA Rail is proud to support this initiative that encourages young Canadians and families to discover the country.
      From June 20 to September 2, children and young adults aged 24 and under will be able to travel for free or at a discount, from coast to coast, with the Canada Strong Pass.
     
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  21. ceezmad

    ceezmad Member+

    Mar 4, 2010
    Chicago
    Club:
    Chicago Red Stars
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Nice, If I start in June 20th in Vancouver, can I get to Helifax before September?
     
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  22. msilverstein47

    msilverstein47 Member+

    Jan 11, 1999
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    is there a soccer team playing in Nova Scotia these days??? If not, then why would anyone want to visit???;)
     
  23. Germerica

    Germerica Member+

    May 2, 2012
    SoCal burbs
    Club:
    Los Angeles
  24. roby

    roby Member+

    SIRLOIN SALOON FC, PITTSFIELD MA
    Feb 27, 2005
    So Cal
    A cross-country train trip in Canada, from the east coast to the west coast, covers a distance of approximately 4,466 kilometers (2,775 miles). This journey, typically undertaken by VIA Rail's The Canadian, takes around four days to complete and spans multiple provinces and time zone. Between $2500 and $4500. Airfare cost starting at $300 R/T for 6 hr flight. :eek:
     

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