Rail in the US

There has been a lot of talk about high-speed rail lines in states like Ohio, Wisconsin and California. With the political changes bringing new governors and congressmen into office, it’s difficult to think that much will change.
The Economist mentions the political divide:

”Yet high-speed rail has become an ideological issue, supported by Democrats and opposed by Republicans with little reference to the specifics of any given project. The left views it as a near-perfect form of stimulus: creating “unoutsourceable” jobs; reducing congestion; making life easier for business; trimming carbon emissions and laying the foundations for a bigger and thus even more beneficial train network to come. Republicans, meanwhile, consider high-speed rail the physical embodiment of runaway spending, imposed from Washington by an out-of-touch elite despite its whiff of European socialism.

The project in California is also contentious. Although the rail project would create a lot of jobs and link major cities, citizens are concerned about the high speeds and potential damage to farmland. California’s budget is already an issue: the project could cost upwards of $40 billion.

All of this debate while recent statistics lament the poor state of American infrastructure.

The fact is, America evolved and expanded based on oil and private automobile ownership. But we know that these are not sustainable in a world becoming more strapped for resources. I get frustrated when I think about how big business and its ties with politics are handicapping the US. We are a country of great minds and an exceptional (if not expensive and slightly flawed) education system. Why can’t we be the forerunners in moving from fossil fuels and waste to renewable energy and efficient use?

A separate article from The Economist discusses the potential for trains powered by hybrid technology.

Perhaps the reluctance to make changes also has to do with size. Since America is much larger than any European country, 200 miles could put you in another state. In Europe, it will probably take you into another country. In many instances it’s probably cheaper and quicker to fly when traveling within the US. But if there were a high speed train run efficiently enough and with enough demand to keep costs down, would flying always be a better option in the days of TSA pat downs?

Maybe a passenger rail infrastructure isn’t necessary because there isn’t a demand. Or is there no demand because no system exists? Perhaps governmental agencies could conduct surveys into the most used lines and make inquiries into potential new lines to meet the movement of people, then overhaul those. A line between New York and Chicago exists via Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, but what an amazing trip that would be if it weren’t over a day in length.

Our economy has changed as well. We aren’t the producers that we were following WWII when the United States was at its height. We aren’t competitive on international markets and businesses send far too many jobs overseas because of this. What can we do to create jobs in the United States? Well, we could start by taking the time and spending the money to improve our infrastructure. This is a long-term investment and it isn’t cheap. It’s hard for Americans to understand the concept of “long-term,” since our rabid consumerism is based on having things now rather than later. The sky is the limit to understanding and developing new technology. The United States continues to lag behind because of old ideas and the power of big business. What people don’t understand is the amount of money and jobs that can be gained with investment in these new technologies, not to mention the uncountable benefits of a sustainable society.

Of course, this is not without its problems. Freight lines don’t want to share the track with passenger lines and freight rail is still used very heavily. Amtrak has authority over some local lines (like in suburban Philadelphia) which sometimes causes problems between SEPTA and Amtrak in negotiating usage. Improving and laying rail is expensive, and high speed rail requires high quality track. The other question is one of mentality: will people use these new lines? For those of us who have lived abroad, not having to own and drive a car is wonderful. Even in Albania I can get where I’m going provided I leave at the right time. I wish I could travel across the US with such little effort but our public transportation structure makes that difficult. We have chosen to develop based on the individual and not the collective (surprise), and our public transportation is evident of this fundamental aspect of the American mentality.

For those who say the US is simply too large to connect by rail, one look at the projects and lines in China is evidence to the contrary. China already has 4,000KM of track in operation and over 6,000KM of high-speed rail under construction (with another 3,000KM planned). The United States has 362KM in operation and 1,200KM planned, making rail another area where the US lags behind. It’s time to make the hard decisions and the expensive investments now to improve the future.

Visa Liberalization

I’ve spent most of November on the road thanks to a program that pairs old Peace Corps Volunteers with new ones – so after 1 ½ years here, I’ve been matched with two volunteers from the new group who have been here seven months. It’s been interesting visiting them in their sites and seeing what their lives are like and hopefully I’ve been able to add some helpful insight in dealing with their issues.

I visited a volunteer Himare, a small coastal town in southern Albania. Southern Albania is very different from the northern Adriatic coast that I call home. Going south, you pass through Vlore, go through a national forest, and come out to see the Ionian Sea with huge mountains that run right into the sea. Himare has a Greek minority. Greek is spoken on the streets. Students speak Greek amongst themselves. I’m not quite sure if this area was always Greek or if it was created by Albanians returning from work abroad, but there is a lot of ethnic tension. Many people there speak Greek as a first language. In the north where I live, many people speak Italian but there isn’t any sort of Italian community. The challenges of teaching large, multi-leveled classes are multiplied when students’ first language might not even be Albanian. It’s a unique challenge to volunteers in border towns along the south and southeastern part of the country.

While I was visiting, the EU approved short-term, visa-free travel for Albanians (Eastern Approaches analysis here). Visa-free travel has been a topic of discussion in the news since I’ve been here, with channels covering and discussing it even when there wasn’t anything new to add to the conversation. On November 9th, a day after the visa liberalization, the EU moved to launch membership negotiations with Albania. There were concerts and celebrations. The Albanian government spent countless money putting up signs and advertisements throughout Tirana about Albania becoming part of the EU.

Certainly, this is something to look forward to. But I, along with many other Albanians, am skeptical. Firstly, of the 13 million illegal immigrants in the US today, half of them are estimated to have entered the US legally. Given the huge brain drain facing Albanian society, how will this affect the EU countries receiving Albanian immigrants, and how will it affect Albanian society? The travel is visa-free only for a period of 3 months, but how often will Albanians, who have a history of illegal immigration to Greece and Italy, actually return? The EU has already said that visa-free travel through the Schengen Zone is a privilege than can be revoked. It would be terrible to have to lose it since it’s taken so long to get it in the first place. Secondly, one can’t help but feel that this just one big political distraction from the other problems facing Albania. The Socialists are still complaining about last June’s elections. Albania still has a long way to go in meeting EU benchmarks for parliamentary organization and rule of law, amongst other things. And the latest flooding in the northern regions of the country have been devastating. How important is visa-free travel when ranked with all this other issues? While I think it’s critical for Albanians to go abroad and experience other parts of the world, and while they deserve the freedom to do so, the weight that visa-free travel has been given in current discourse is disproportionate to the real issues facing the country.