the historical relativism of high speed on passenger railways: 1830-present jim cohen, ph.d.,...
TRANSCRIPT
The Historical Relativism of High Speed on Passenger Railways: 1830-Present
Jim Cohen, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus; Director, Research Initiatives; Institute for Transportation Systems; The City University of New York; [email protected]
Train à Grand Vitesse Eurostar
Coast Daylight Streamliner
Tom Thumb, Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
“…the time spent getting from one place to another…is not an objective mathematical unit, but (rather) a subjective perception of space-time.”
W. Schivelbusch, Railway journey:the industrialization of time and space in the 19th century (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986). 36.
OUTLINE OF PRESENTATION
• 1. Periods of High Speed in Rail History
• 2. The Social Construction of High Speed in Each Historic Period
• 3. High Speed and Rail Finances
• 4. Policy Implications
Periods of High Speed in Rail History
• 1830-40: First steam powered locomotives
• 1900-1910: More powerful locomotives and improved infrastructure
• 1930-1955: Era of Streamliners
• 1964-Present: After the Japanese Bullet Train
Northeast, Texas, and California HSR Corridors
Tom Thumb, Baltimore & Ohio Railroad
1910 Frisco Locomotive
NY Central Steam Streamliner
Japanese Bullet Train, 1964
Historic Periods of High Speed, Northeast Corridor, NYC – Washington, D.C., Changes in Rate of Speed, 1890-19801
1 Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the U.S. (New York: National Railway Publication Company)
Fastest Commercial Speed by Decade1
Historic Periods of High Speed, Texas Corridor, Fort Worth/Dallas–Houston, Changes in Rate of Speed, 1890-19801
1 Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the U.S. (New York: National Railway Publication Company)2Increase over 1910 rate of speed
Fastest Commercial Speed by Decade1
2
Historic Periods of High Speed, California Corridor, S.F. – L.A., Changes in Rate of Speed, 1890-19801
1 Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the U.S. (New York: National Railway Publication Company)
Fastest Commercial Speed by Decade1
Historic Periods of High Speed, Northeast, Texas, and California Corridors, Changes in Rate of Speed, 1890-19801
1 Official Guide of the Railways and Steam Navigation Lines of the U.S. (New York: National Railway Publication Company)2 Texas corridor shows increase over 1910 rate of speed
Fastest Commercial Speed by Decade1
2
The Social Construction of High Speed
Rock Island Ry’s “Golden Rocket”
“Iron Horses” of the 1830s and 1840sNewspapers talk about a “disagreeable sensation of dizziness,” of passengers “not being able to breathe while travelling at such velocity,” and of “eyes being damaged by having to adjust…” to high speed.”
New Haven Railroad “Comet”
Railroad Building at 1939–40 World’s Fair
PRR S-1 Streamliner at 1939–40 World’s Fair
Supertrains: Solutions to America’s Transportation Gridlock, Joseph Vranich
Coors Light “Silver Bullet” Christmas Ad
High Speed And
Rail Finance
Coast Daylight Streamliner
“(an) instant and profitable…(train)”
D. Hofsommer, The Southern Pacific, 1901-1985 (College Station, Texas: Texas A & M University Press, 1986).
“(b)uilding a margin of time savings over automobiles and buses, the(se) trains attracted standing-room-only crowds and returned solid earning to their owners…(E)very minute saved in transit was likely to generate 1 per cent more traffic (and, thereby, higher earnings)”
W. Middleton and M. Reutter, "Fast trains and faster," Railroad History 31, no. Spring-Summer (2007): 35.
City Night Line
Policy Implications
City Night Line Train in Countryside
The Historical Relativism of High Speed on Passenger Railways: 1830-Present
Jim Cohen, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus; Director, Research Initiatives; Institute for Transportation Systems; The City University of New York; [email protected]