Well we are going around in a circle now! As I say, I believe our positions are rather irreconcilable now we have both found our fundamental biases; yours against flying and mine against driving. And (being raised in England) my inherent dislike of standard-class train travel.
There are one or two points:
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
The cost in rail is the capital outlay. Once you get past that, you can operate at a break even or at a profit.
I don't believe you. If you know how to do this, please come and run our rail service in the UK.
Or indeed the one in Japan. Or the one in France.
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
Your example in Japan, if US security were applied to it, would make the two methods take the same amount of time. You also have to account for comfort. Would you rather be sardine on a commercial airliner, or travel on a comfortable and fantastic Shinkansen?
Security is roughly the same in procedure, but being Japanese it has more people employed than necessary rather than fewer.
Flying actually takes slightly less time, in my specific case, although I was in a major hurry the two times I was asked to go that way for speed.
You're right, the Shinkansen is great, and I normally take the train---but time was pressing in those instances. As for comfort, well Japanese rail is very inefficiently loaded with massive leg room! It's almost like that wasteful business class on the plane. They really should tighten that up and increase passenger density as much as humanly possible. That would be much more efficient, wouldn't you agree?
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
That figure for MJ ...
Yes indeed, I was simply quoting current facts. Of course we can play with the numbers in a dream world and the best train will usually beat the best plane. But the idea that planes are in a completely different league is simply a fiction. It's also irrelevant, because if minimising energy use was our principal metric we would use Skype.
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
Comparing Southwest to an international airline is pointless, as Southwest isn't an international airline.
Comparing Southwest to Delta is pointless, as Delta isn't a budget airline.
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
Assigned seating is not only a PITA, and annoying, but it adds time to the boarding process, which is annoying, and causes fewer flights per day with the same aircraft, which is waste, and drives costs up. I feel like a broken record, but people just don't seem to get the way the Southwest model works, and why it is superior.
I'm sorry that you are annoyed. I am annoyed by non-assigned seating, because I am usually late and end up in a bad seat. Nowdays I avoid this pitful by using carriers that enable me to pick a good seat in advance. Isn't the market great?
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
That analogy makes no sense. A restaurant is not focused on a single objective that is metric-based (like traveling is).
I have a metric for you: necessary nutrients consumed per dollar expended.
There we go. Nothing more to it. One goes to a restaurant for sustenance when one is far from ones own kitchen; one travels on a plane/train/automobile to go somewhere. The experience in either case is utterly irrelevant.
Sorry to be facetious (I know it isn't very clever) but this doesn't strike you as a double standard at all? To me the analogy is perfect.
For all our complaints, we on this board rather enjoy travelling, or at least I do. I picked my current job because I get to go places, and I actually like sitting on planes and trains and watching the world go by, wandering what all those folks are doing beneath me, as I recline with a beer in my hand. (And working as well of course.)
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
The concept of flying there on a near daily basis is physically impossible. You have to get to BWI (1hr 33 mins from Downtown DC), then you have to go through security (2hr). ...
Security does not usually take two hours, (I normally allow <30 mins but I haven't been to this airport) --- and if your flight is getting close you push to the front. Also, if BWI is taking 1 hour 30 mins (!?), can you route through DCA? (20 mins on the metro.)
Originally Posted by
BiggAW
I'm not a troll. I just don't subscribe to coming up with all these nutty hypothetical scenarios of people who can't seem to drive somewhere for a couple of hours. This America. We drive everywhere.
I don't think you are a troll and I value your input in this board. But please try to be more understanding of other people's positions. You do not have a monopoly on sensible reasoning.
(I really hate driving though.
)