No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world · 23 hours ago

Why is US rail travel so expensive?

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Why is US rail travel so expensive?

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No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world · 23 hours ago

I had some vacation time and I’ve never ridden a train before, so I thought I’d look it up. I’d seen a few YouTube videos and it looked like something I’d like. I’m not a fan of air travel at all.

I went to look up tickets and was shocked at the price. I could drive for cheaper and faster including my own stops. I could fly for cheaper and faster and wouldn’t have to pay for a sleeper car or hotel. It seems like there’s no benefit to taking a train at all. Even the hassle of flying is worth the time and money saved.

Ps and why does a sleeper car (the thing that had me curious from YouTube) $1000/night?!

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Roads in the US are subsidized at billions of dollars. Public rail service is maybe a fraction of a fraction of that. To boot, most the railways in the US are owned by a handful of private companies in local, regional monopolies.

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