When we say High Speed Train, we tend to think of France and Japan first and foremost. We also know that there is a kind of love-hate relationship between those fast train companies and the airlines. Love is in the air, or rather on the tracks, when some Thalys trains run with an Air France flight number between Brussels and Paris Charles De Gaulle airport or when several of Germany’s ICE trains carry a LH number… But when trains take passengers away from certain flights instead of feeding the airline network, love changes to hate…
The competition war between air and high speed rail travel is being fought in several areas, some of which make the playing field anything but level. City centre to city centre or airport to airport, the nightmares of airport security and the lack of it on the trains, public money in the infrastructure against full cost recovery for the airlines… No one has figured out yet how best to make these two great forms of transport live with each other.
In 2009, China is investing 50 billion US dollars in the construction of the world’s biggest high speed train network. What are the airlines in China thinking?
The growth rate of the Chinese economy for the second quarter if 2009 was 7.9 % and it is now widely believed by experts that the expansion in the whole of 2009 will hit 8.3 %. Figures most other parts of the world can only dream about at the best of times… Part of the engine behind this growth is the massive infrastructure spending the Chinese government has been pursuing for some time now. To counter the crisis, spending levels have been increased spectacularly with execution of plans made earlier speeded up.
There are new airports, scores of airlines and the new high speed train network, all being built and operated in a strange kind of market economy that is still very much centrally controlled.
The growth of some airlines was put on hold when the going got too hard; others were allowed to die yet others prospered… China is also working diligently to build a commercial aircraft industry that can compete on the world stage. Although the Airbus assembly line operating there does not represent the latest in airframe construction technology, the Chinese will figure out soon enough how to replace aluminum with material from recycled plastic lunch boxes…
I wonder what those in the central command of the country are thinking when they give the ok to spend billions on high speed trains, airports, aircraft plants and airlines… Do they have a plan? In central command economies there is supposed to be a plan for everything… Have they figured out what the best combination is for air transport and high speed rail transport?
Will they avoid the fight between the railways and the airlines, commanding them instead to operate services that they are the best suited for?
It is hard to know and it will take a few years before any answer might become visible. But we better watch them… Command economy or not, may be they know something we still need to learn.
Interesting debate!
In our open Western economy, regulations at the citizen benefit are really poor, except in some specific areas such ATM. This well known sector has to face other modes of transport concurrence, requiring also huge infrastructure and equipment investments, in which states aids are not always equals.
It seems obvious that citizen interest should be more taken into account in the global economy, eliminating its excesses, more power being given to a central regulator (ICAO/ONU), considering this citizen interest as a major decision criterion.
Is the Chinese experience to be considered as the new model to be followed? Not really, having regards to its own excesses. Nevertheless, we should certainly focus on a possible common long term strategy that should succeed, if more citizens oriented.
It can only work, if people prosperity follows economical growth, such aspect being neglected in actual models.
The competition war between air and high speed rail travel is won by the Airstream Train that combines Airplane Technology on a monorail System.
This is the Future of High Speed Rail.
It s faster then an Airplane and thus renders Airtravel as obsolete.
It is safer then any of those in this Article.
It is absolute 0 Emission, the only one.
It is Cheaper to build then any other.
And it is faster to build then any other.
It offers Infrastructure Improvements.
I dare anyone to prove me otherwise.
http://www.zeroemissiontransportation.webs.com/
The Airstream Train is the only Transportation that we ever need.
Faster safer reliable and Ecologically Integrated.
D. W. Major
Inventor