HIGH SPEED RAIL IS COMING TO THE US!

Click on Map to Enlarge it!

After my stressful day flying to Florida and back for a 15 minute meeting, I was reminded of how much I hate flying, the day got progressively better, after I wrote my sad, bitter post.
I can't stand Airports anymore, it is getting worse everyday, you literally have to undress yourself to go thru security, you might tell me it has been like this for a while, I will tell you, it is getting worse.
Yesterday, in the chaos of my bad day and mental and physical stress I handed my Credit Card to a TSA official instead of my Driver's License, the guy was literally scratching his head and looking at me trying to figure out what was going on...and I was so stupidly "Jacked UP" after being ripped off by the Thug cab driver, I was thinking WHAT? WHAT NOW?
The poor guy was very patient and asked -I see that your credit card has a picture but, Do you have an actual ID on you Sir?
I looked at him with a confused and embarrassed look...!!!!
-Oh, sorry, yes, off course, that is my Credit Card, sorry, it's been a long and frustrating day!
The poor guy was actually doing his job and I was out of it.
Once last year, American Airlines gave me the WRONG BOARDING PASS, with someone else's name, I didn't see it, then I went on thru security and NOBODY caught it either, those TSA people were so distracted it was ridiculous.
After the incident they got mad at ME, like I had done something wrong.
Excuse me! I know I was distracted, but if you were doing YOUR job, YOU wouldn't have allowed me in with DRIVER'S LICENSE not matching MY BOARDING PASS.
Flying used to be a great pleasure, back in the 80's, when TWA still existed and flight attendants were gentle and nice and helpful.
Nowadays, you have to be afraid of these neurotic divas, you look them the wrong way and they have the power to throw you off the plane, I have seen it happening with my own eyes.
American Airlines is not helping with their falling a part airplanes and rude personnel, they behave like they are doing you are favor to allow you to fly with in their precious junked up Airplanes.
Dear fellow blogger and friend Jana @ Paper Plains described a horrifying event on her recent flight out of Sao Paulo with American Airlines on Paulista Pursuits on this recent post HERE.
It reminded me of a similar incident I had with American Airlines flying out Mexico on a Chicago bound flight last year, same issue, the radars went all out and we had to return to the tarmac and wait for a solution, which in that case, American Airlines mechanics trouble shooting the issue via cell phone from Tulsa, Oklahoma, once they didn't have American Airlines mechanics on site in Mexico.
They didn't take us back to the GATE because if we left the plane, they would be forced to place us in other Airlines and pay for it.
Long story short, we were HOLD HOSTAGE on a parked Airplane all turned off, no A/C, super hot, we were being baked alive, door wide open, flys and other bugs in the airplane, UGH, it was a horrible experience to say the least...!!!
There was a commotion, many people fought and got off the plane, they walked right off the plane on the tarmac and left, I had no choice, didn't want to be a the Newspapers on a foreigner country causing trouble when I was representing my bank in that country. I stayed and waited for ever...along with the other poor souls who had no choice.
They have rules that always benefit the Airlines and put us passengers in the back burner, until they get their crap together. It got progressively worse after 9/11.
I HATE FLYING. HATE FLYING. HATE IT.
Well, Good news on the way! I hope!
Spain built a High Speed Rail between Madrid and Seville and their project was so successful that they have more people traveling by high speed train between those two cities than people traveling by cars and planes combined.
France was able to revitalized many sleepy touristic cities when they added high speed rails as their destinations.
China is building so much High Speed Rail that in 5 years they will offer more options than any other country for this mode of transportation.
And then today, Gil shares THIS story with me.
It brought me a big smile, principally after the awful flying experience I had flying down to Florida yesterday.
I dream of the day we will be able to take High Speed Rail all over the USA.
The Acela is an Express train service, it is only between Boston and Washington DC, I am a frequent Acela passenger, usually going from Providence to New York city is my best option, principally in the winter with the snow and ice and traffic jams, no to mention the absurd cost of parking in New York city, but it is High Speed Rail, far from it. It is only faster than the Regional Amtrak trains because it doesn't stop in every small town along the way.
It would be really great if we can take this project on and turn it into a reality, we need Speed Rail in the US.
If you take a look at THIS excellent article by Wolters Kluwer, Brazil is expected to generate around 30,000 new jobs from the project which is very small comparing to Obama's Vision for High Speed Rail in the US, you can just imagine how many so needed jobs we could create in the US if the Obama administration is able to make this Vision a reality, I hope they succeed.
We can still have the Airplanes for the long distances or for the smaller markets where trains are not profitable, but we definitely need trains between our big American cities, fast, reliable comfortable trains, it will be an important step in freeing us from the turmoils of the International Oil market.