🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <66422@cup.portal.com> ts@cup.portal.com (Tim W Smith) writes:
>A weird thought, after reading the discussion here about the LA Metro.
>Has anyone considered ferry trains?  That is, trains that can carry
>automobiles?
>
This is common in Switzerland.  It is most commonly used to traverse
certain passes south to Italy.  When riding a train there, one can
often see an auto on a flat car at the rear of the train.  Swiss trains
are fast and inexpensive.  They also go nearly everywhere.  Buses cover
the rest of the country.  

There used to be (and perhaps still is) a passenger train from Virginia
to Orlando, FL that carried automobiles.  

This is the first time I have seen a proposal for doing this for commuting
in California.  In the South Bay, commutes do not follow a single corridor,
they are from anywhere to anywhere.

Note that for short journeys, making frequent stops loading/unloading 
autos - with Amtrak-style efficiency - this is a very slow moving train!
For this to be a practical commute option, I would expect the service must
be frequent or the journey (by train) long, and faster than by auto.

People drive their cars for convenience and short travel times.  Successful
mass transit alternatives must meet or beat the car for convenience and
speed.  This is the big problem with buses in the South Bay Area.  It takes
HOURS to get to a typical destination.

I suppose that this kind of service might make sense between Sacramento and
San Jose, for example.  If I-80 becomes impassable.
-- 
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Rob Eccles         | Disclaimer: The statements made here do not 
rob@vitsemi.COM    | represent my employer or anyone else.