I saw a documentary from some cable chanell on this a while ago, there are some really cool ideas but I can't see it working. It would cost billions to build, and would have to be a lot better than the airlines to make sense.
But its a cool idea.
One version I saw had it as an evacuated tunnel in which trains could go 5,000mph. 1 hr New York-> London
Heh. I have told you about my half-envisioned future with mid-pacific and mid-atlantic railway terminus city-states named Octopus's Garden and Atlantis, right? (The main problem with the Octopus's Garden idea is that there's really only one good spot for it, and Hawaii is already there.)
I want to know how they expect to deal with the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The plates separate by a couple centimetres a year -- somehow I think a 400mph train is going to have an issue with that.
There are several ideas, the one I saw was a suspended tunnel, so it does not go threw the bottom but is suspended a few hundred feet below the surface.
The four years thing was what got me -- if the Big Dig has taken 10 (so far) and is expected to last 'till 2012, how exactly will this be ready by 2009? :-) I guess I'm not that gullible after all!
I was looking it over going: "This sounds really cool, and almost plausible, but I can't help wondering why I've never heard of it before." And the tech stuff wasn't adding up for me.
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Date: 2005-01-19 03:42 pm (UTC)But its a cool idea.
One version I saw had it as an evacuated tunnel in which trains could go 5,000mph. 1 hr New York-> London
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Date: 2005-01-19 03:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-19 04:12 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-19 04:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-19 04:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-19 04:27 pm (UTC)Very Late (or Early) April Fools . . . .
Date: 2005-01-19 04:38 pm (UTC)Re: Very Late (or Early) April Fools . . . .
Date: 2005-01-19 04:43 pm (UTC)of course, i was partway through filling out my info before i noticed :)
-steve
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Date: 2005-01-19 05:10 pm (UTC)grammar geek here
Date: 2005-01-19 05:47 pm (UTC)*chuckles*
Date: 2005-01-19 06:43 pm (UTC):-) I guess I'm not that gullible after all!
no subject
Date: 2005-01-19 06:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-01-19 08:12 pm (UTC)But, dangnit, I wished it were true.
Zhaneel
Re: Very Late (or Early) April Fools . . . .
Date: 2005-01-20 04:09 am (UTC)WHat the hoopin' boobah happened to your icon?
It's like Steve, but in scary Klingon-Hobbit mode.
no subject
Date: 2005-01-20 05:17 am (UTC)