Not sure how we got from Scott A being a rationalist to trains, but since we're here, I want to say:
I've taken a Chinese train from Zhengzhou, in central China, to Shenzhen, and it was fantastic. Cheap, smooth, fast, lots of legroom, easy to get on and off or walk around to the dining car. And, there's a thing where boiling hot water is available, so everyone brings instant noodle packs of every variety to eat on the train.
Can't even imagine what the US would be like if we had that kind of thing.
Similar experience here. I'd always prefer it to flying.
Getting to the airport in most major cities takes an hour, and then there's the whole pre-flight security theatre, and the flights themselves are rarely pleasant. To add insult to injury, in the US it's usually a $50 cab ride to the airport and there are $28 ham-and-cheese sandwiches in the terminal if you get hungry.
In China and Japan the trains are centrally located, getting on takes ten minutes, and the rides are extremely comfortable. If such a thing existed in the US I think it would be extremely popular. Even if it was just SF-LA-Vegas.
> Getting to the airport in most major cities takes an hour
Do you mean beginning in the same city? If so, that's downright hilarious. I live 50 miles clear of the city, out in the middle of nowhere, and can be to the airport in the city in less than an hour.
> If such a thing existed in the US I think it would be extremely popular.
I don't know, if people willingly spend an hour getting from one point to another in the same city, the aren't apt to be concerned about how they get from one city to another. I expect they don't put much thought into anything.
I've taken a Chinese train from Zhengzhou, in central China, to Shenzhen, and it was fantastic. Cheap, smooth, fast, lots of legroom, easy to get on and off or walk around to the dining car. And, there's a thing where boiling hot water is available, so everyone brings instant noodle packs of every variety to eat on the train.
Can't even imagine what the US would be like if we had that kind of thing.