Last Train to Tainan...
There is simply no excuse... I'm sitting on the Taiwan High Speed Rail heading south to Tainan. The train is traveling at a speed far in excess of what the Acela could ever hope to achieve. The ride is smooth, tight, and feels like a Porsche or some other exotic sports car. The Acela on the other hand is like a Ford Mustang--it can go fast in a straight line, but the ride and handling are sloppy, it feels heavy and inefficient, and the whole package feels like it was designed and built by a committee (that couldn't possibly be the case with the Acela... wink wink).
It's a sad statement that America has been unwilling and unable to build an effective high speed rail system. The Acela is marginally faster than the standard train, and the price value is terrible. It failed in all respects--for a passenger it's really no cheaper than flying between Boston and NYC, or Philly and DC. It's certainly not any faster. About the only thing it has going for it is the fact that it is comfortable, and the first class service it pretty nice--but stupidly expensive for a train.
But man, this train is so much smoother at all speeds than the lumbering Acela. By the way, I should point out that the Taiwan HSR uses the Japanese bullet trains and technology--a proven system that would have been a much better investment than the half-assed Acela crap. Had the government and Amtrak simply made the investment in the rail bed rather than designing an entirely new (and far more expensive) train design, everyone would have come out ahead.
That seems to be par for the course when dealing with the US government--cut every corner when building the foundation, then pay through the nose in time, money, and opportunity cost trying to keep the building standing. Whether it is the war in Iraq--spending the money and providing the troop levels needed in the beginning would have cut down on the costs everyone has been paying since then (and we won't get into the debate about whether or not to even embark on mission to begin with)--or the levees in New Orleans, trying to do something on the cheap, almost always end up costing more. But, I guess congress wouldn't have enough work to do if it weren't busy all the time hahing up supplemental spending bills to solve problems they created by over legislating and underfunding from the outset...
The only gripes I have about the Taiwan HSP is the fact that the seats could be a little more comfortable, and I'd appreciate an electrical outlet. However, the duration of the trip from Taipei to Tainan is under two hours, so my laptop battery will last the entire ride. This is a rough guess, but I would estimate that the Acela would take more than three hours to make the 1:45 trip I'm currently enjoying.
Again, I never cease to be disappointed that the US for all it's wealth, technology, and spirit of innovation can't build a decent rail system, and for that matter can rarely keep the trains running on time...
