Probably cost less than finishing the line along the 99 highway.
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I wouldn’t think so. Look at a topo map of the I-5 corridor and recall the horizontal and vertical curves needed for 220mph peak. Erik had a recent post that touched on the amount of work needed for just a small section of the route.
Even if the prospective last-mile route into SF is Great Way Round sharing lots of grade crossings with commuter trains, it seems to have reasonable-gradient construction over to the ‘spine’ that goes north and south.
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English that came here after the French and Indian war ended in 1763. On my mother’s side of the family. We’ve got tombstones in cemeteries in what’s western Illinois with dates from 1760s for date of birth. With land holdings going on for over 200 years. Yeah we’re that original in Illinois. My mom’s farm has been in her family’s name for over 150 years and that’s one of the youngest holdings in the family. One of my great uncles that just passed away his family has owned the original 160 acres since 1765.
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You’re fortunate that the gravestone carvings are legible. Granite or marble were unusual in the 18th century in Illinois, as sandstone and limestone were the practice even in the 19th C.
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They’ve been replaced over the years as part of their upkeep by the families as part of their heritage. When the last generation dies they check to see if anyone needed to get replaced. The last limestone one was replaced 60 years ago with granite.
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I’m completely fine with that. Yet we do spend more money per capita in rural areas than urban. So maybe I should be in favor of a smaller federal government. The states can pay for everything. Of course cities will complain and then be in favor of county level spending.
Taking that thinking to its ultimate conclusion will lead to cities walled off from rural areas like in medieval times. If that were to happen, I’ll take medieval cities for $1000 Alex.
I don’t think anyone is proposing 220 along those stretches. The infrastructure costs would be insane. Brightline is only proposing about 80-100 on similar stretches on I-15, within the confines of vertical and horizontal curvatures. Take a look at openrailwaymap.org. Zoom in on LA to LV. Select max speeds from the three bar menu. You’ll see what I mean.
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That’s interesting; everything I remember reading about West has 125mph peak speed (evidently considering that median an effective grade-separated ‘sealed corridor’) and I don’t remember seeing anything in the proposed route’s curve and grade profile to preclude that.
Whether the time difference between 125mph and 100mph peak is significant, I haven’t worked through in detail. Note that a reduction from 125 to 100 reduces peak horsepower requirement by 50% in those segments, which might be politically significant.
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Peak speeds are 185mph on the straight stretches of which there are a lot. At least half or more will be 185. The curvy parts will be lower. Generally 80-100. Map reveals all. Taken directly from Brightline’s engineering plans.
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Thank you!
You’re very welcome.