WITH ALL THE DISCUSSION OF MASSIVE AID TO HAITI, SHOULD HAITI BE LOCKED IN TO A COMPLETELY ROAD BASED INTERNAL TRANSORTATION SYSTEM, GIVEN THAT IT IMPORTS ALL ITS FUEL, OR SHOULD A NEW RAILROAD SYSTEM PLAY A PART?
WHY ARE WE TALKING WITH CAPS LOCK ON? Whether a railroad system is right for Haiti depends on how much freight and passenger traffic there is, and how far it’s going. Also, the distances involved would have to be long enough for a railroad to be cheaper than trucks – railroads are expensive to build so the railroad will have to be able to charge pretty good-sized rates if they are to make their money back. Just some food for thought…
The only valid reason for developing a new railroad (or a new branch to an old railroad) is the existence of a source (or sources) of a large amount of heavy traffic. In the third world, most existing rail routes were originally developed to move the output of inland mines to seaports.
So, would Haiti be a suitable location for a railroad?
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Haiti is mountainous. Rails would have to bridge, cut or tunnel while roads can simply be scraped and blasted reasonably flat. Hairpin turns and horrendous grades come with the territory. (Haiti has a LOT of dirt roads. Less than 1/3 of Haitian road mileage is paved.)
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Haiti has almost no pool of skilled labor. Most Haitians are subsistence farmers.
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There are no really long hauls. Most of Haiti is within easy reach of the coast, and small coastal vessels are a lot cheaper to operate than a railroad.
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The GNP of Haiti is on the order of twelve billion dollars US. Three years of the entire output of Haiti would still fall short of what Warren Buffett paid for BNSF.
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Governmental corruption is endemic, and has been a considerable barrier to investment. At present, Haiti exists on handouts from wealthier countries.
'Nuf said, I think.
Chuck.
I believe email is a visual medium, not vocal, the print medium uses upper and lower case letters, I was taught to read both, the meaning never changed, I have never noticed a difference between the two, the message is the same, when did printing distinguish the differnce or meaning of a message from upper to lower case lettering, pity the poor reader who cannot differentiate the message because of the different shape of a letter, hopefully they will not drive, as signs are upper case. M is still m, r is still R. (talking?? on the internet? ? ) It seems Haiti is falling into the same realm as New Orleans, “Gone- but truly forgotten”
Wow, that’s a long sentence. Or is it: WOW THAT’S A LONG SENTENCE!