10 things to know about the Japanese bullet train, coming soon to Texas
https://www.khou.com/mobile/article/news/10-things-to-know-about-the-japanese-bullet-train-coming-soon-to-texas/285-617882809
(Via KHOU 11)

All aboard.

Build It said:

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Well since they don't get eminent domain

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Incorrect

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and plenty of long time landholders will not sell it would seem a fantasy.

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So much of the track is elevated that buying land is not the issue you think it might be. Texas Central need only lease pads for the foundations at elevated sections, an arrangement most ranchers and farmers impacted by the deal are familiar with and welcome.

AliasMan02 said:

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Build It said:

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Well since they don't get eminent domain

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Incorrect

Quote:

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and plenty of long time landholders will not sell it would seem a fantasy.

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So much of the track is elevated that buying land is not the issue you think it might be. Texas Central need only lease pads for the foundations at elevated sections, an arrangement most ranchers and farmers impacted by the deal are familiar with and welcome.

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Not wrong, currently a lawsuit concerning the matter. They contend they are a railroad that can have the power. Landowners say they are a passenger train and not a railroad. It is yet to be decided and so far the politicos have not acted.

chipotle said:

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So if I lived in BCS I'd have to drive 30 minutes to take a 30 minute train ride to Houston which would still be at least 30 minutes away from everywhere I need to be OR drive 30 minutes to take a 60 minute ride to falls and still be at least 30 minutes away from every I need to be?

No thanks

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The stop near CS isn't so much for commuters as it is for maintenance and such, and (probably) a switching station for a future spur to Austin.

Build It said:

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Property rights. Don't steal my land for your profit. Simple concept.

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I actually agree, but the law is what it is and the courts will decide what they decide (in favor of Texas Central). The VAST majority of this land will be bought or leased, as few landowners on the route will have much cause to decline. But, it seems impossible that Eminent Domain won't be used in some limited cases. Like pipelines and fiber and railroads and a bunch of other private enterprises, there is a lengthy precedent that individual land ownership doesn't stand in the way of the development of infrastructure.

Can't help but feel like this is going to be a terrorist magnet

Texas is very hard to get eminent domain. Most private pipelines which this is not don't get it. They pay through the nose. Their only hope is to convince them it's a railroad which seems a stretch. I think the law is on the landowners side. Like you said we shall see but whatever happens it won't be in 2019.

Build It said:

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Texas is very hard to get eminent domain. Most private pipelines which this is not don't get it. They pay through the nose. Their only hope is to convince them it's a railroad which seems a stretch. I think the law is on the landowners side. Like you said we shall see but whatever happens it won't be in 2019.

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I think they'll break ground in 2019, or 2020 at the latest, for regulatory/permitting reasons. But, I agree the timeline is aggressive.

chipotle said:

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So if I lived in BCS I'd have to drive 30 minutes to take a 30 minute train ride to Houston which would still be at least 30 minutes away from everywhere I need to be OR drive 30 minutes to take a 60 minute ride to falls and still be at least 30 minutes away from every I need to be?

No thanks

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30 minutes with no traffic, more like 45 minutes in the mornings dodging all the Sam students trying to break the speed of sound getting to Huntsville and all the garbage trucks going to the dump

I will still be shocked if it happens.

agsalaska said:

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I will still be shocked if it happens.

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Prepare to be shocked.

And to be clear, I'm not saying it's guaranteed, but just that all indications are that it will go forward.

How does this impact your other passion, talking to people about Saudi men pooping on IG models?

expresswrittenconsent said:

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How does this impact your other passion, talking to people about Saudi men pooping on IG models?

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You're FNG, right? Just checking.

To answer your question, to get that insight you'll have to subscribe to my exclusive Patreon where I delve deeply into this interest. It's a passion project.

AliasMan02 said:

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Build It said:

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Well since they don't get eminent domain

---

Incorrect

Quote:

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and plenty of long time landholders will not sell it would seem a fantasy.

---

So much of the track is elevated that buying land is not the issue you think it might be. Texas Central need only lease pads for the foundations at elevated sections, an arrangement most ranchers and farmers impacted by the deal are familiar with and welcome.

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Wouldn't they also have to lease the airspace used by the tracks?

Mmmm... yes? I'm not sure how that works. But in any case, I don't see why that would be insurmountable if an agreement can be reached about the foundations.

AliasMan02 said:

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expresswrittenconsent said:

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How does this impact your other passion, talking to people about Saudi men pooping on IG models?

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You're FNG, right? Just checking.

To answer your question, to get that insight you'll have to subscribe to my exclusive Patreon where I delve deeply into this interest. It's a passion project.

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I'm keegan99 OvetabuildsBTHOB93. I thought ChiliBeans was FNG. I am intrigued by the patreon though.

Cstrickland05 said:

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AliasMan02 said:

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Cstrickland05 said:

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Why do you have such a hard on for this thing?

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I was a skeptic, big time, but have come to recognize its importance and viability. My company is involved, though I am not personally working on it in any capacity. I also know engineers working for a couple of different entities related to the project, which has proven insightful and is one reason I'm so convinced that it will move forward.

I guess most of my interest is because I'm an engineer and see the massive coming collapse of our existing infrastructure. Projects like Texas Central, Hyperloop, and even the now-defunct Trans-Texas Corridor are essential to Texas's continued prosperity. Other states with separated population centers will follow suit. It's also one reason why I'm a huge proponent of the proliferation of self-driving cars, which will extend the viability of the Interstate system by decades.

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Why do you foresee a collapse? Exploding population?

Just don't see this being anything more than a novelty that will never break even. If the NYC subway system is losing a billion dollars a year, what chance does this have?

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Exploding population, increasing urbanization, aging highways and bridges, and the demographic problems caused by pushing traffic to major arteries instead of distributing across multiple, smaller highways and surface roads. More and more of the territory along the highways is being developed, which contributes a lot to the traffic load. I also think we'll see increased heavy truck shipping from Mexico. Some of that opinion is formed by technical stuff, but most from experience and just observation.

Rail doesn't solve all of that, obviously, but if traffic between Dallas and Houston increases over the next decade as expected, I don't see how I-45 will be able to bear it.

Texas Central is better compared to Southwest Airlines than a subway system, I think. And it very well may end up not being economically viable and needing a public bailout, but if you had a choice between flying or taking a bullet train for about the same price (as claimed), you'd be crazy to want to fly. Travel by train rules. I think they'll fill those things up every day.

expresswrittenconsent said:

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AliasMan02 said:

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expresswrittenconsent said:

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How does this impact your other passion, talking to people about Saudi men pooping on IG models?

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You're FNG, right? Just checking.

To answer your question, to get that insight you'll have to subscribe to my exclusive Patreon where I delve deeply into this interest. It's a passion project.

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I'm keegan99 OvetabuildsBTHOB93. I thought ChiliBeans was FNG. I am intrigued by the patreon though.

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That was a joke. I'll pull the trigger on my Patreon one of these days, but it's on a far stranger and more niche topic than covering #tagthesponsor's turf.