Quote:
Originally Posted by Bassic Lab
HSR would be considerably cheaper than completing the LRT systems in Calgary and Edmonton. It would probably be significantly cheaper than just the Green line. If I remember correctly, when this came up a few years ago, a new greenfield non-HSR rail link would cost something like two billion while an HSR route would cost 3 billion. The price has presumably gone up in the meantime but all of the province's LRT and BRT routes is likely an order of magnitude more.
That said, I still think we're much better off putting the money into local transit systems. That will change when capacity issues between Calgary and Edmonton approach those within the cities. Personally speaking, the willingness of some consortium to be massively subsidized with a free ROW (not to mention the real estate scam that is almost assuredly involved) shouldn't change that. Of course the ROW should be secured while its available.
The less said about Musk's fantasy the better. That is especially so in a corridor where conventional HSR could manage the trip in something like an hour.
|
I really, really doubt you could build any form of worthwhile HSR for $3B.
You got to buy land, you've got the build over 300 km of new double track suitable for HSR, complete with catenary. Most of all, you have to have the entire thing grade separated from everything else. Every road crossing the line, for 300 km, would have to be raised over the line, or the line raised over it.
Threaded Mode