# European High-Speed Rail Expands Across the Continent



## acelafan (Dec 13, 2009)

Truly high-speed train travel, once confined to a few isolated corridors in France, Italy, and Germany, is rapidly expanding across Europe. With the opening of five new track segments to operations at more than 250 km/h (155 mph) on Sunday, the trend continues.

Nice article on European high speed rail improvements.

*Sigh*


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## DET63 (Dec 17, 2009)

I still see a lot of yellow and dashed yellow lines on the map. When those lines turn orange, then I'll believe the Europeans are "railroading." Still, they're far ahead of where we (meaning North Americans) will ever be even 40 years from now.


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## Neil_M (Dec 18, 2009)

DET63 said:


> I still see a lot of yellow and dashed yellow lines on the map. When those lines turn orange, then I'll believe the Europeans are "railroading."


Just makes me wonder what you think is going on now then? A lot of those lines are just theoretical at the moment, and in the case of the extra Paris Lyon line thats the first I have heard about it, although the existing LGV to Lyon is probably not far off capacity at the moment.

It's called 'planning' and in the case of railway projects it is always a good idea.


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## DET63 (Dec 18, 2009)

Neil_M said:


> DET63 said:
> 
> 
> > I still see a lot of yellow and dashed yellow lines on the map. When those lines turn orange, then I'll believe the Europeans are "railroading."
> ...


The headline is in the present tense, not the future. When significant high-speed international connections exist between Spain, France, and Italy, not just from France into Benelux and parts of Germany, will the assertion that high-speed rail is expanding across Europe be true. Although such connections are on the drawing board, they won't be in existence for years to come, at least in some if not most cases.


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## Neil_M (Dec 19, 2009)

DET63 said:


> Neil_M said:
> 
> 
> > DET63 said:
> ...


The mistake you make is to assume Europe is all one country...... The French will always look after themselves, same as everyone else does.

The line between France and Spain is under construction, as is another part of the Eastern France LGV, but the way it works is that you join up all the various pieces to make a network,

Still, when you think the first LGV line didn't open till 1981, its not bad going really.

I await the first proper HSL in the USA with interest, even though I doubt it will happen in my lifetime.


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## DET63 (Dec 20, 2009)

> The mistake you make is to assume Europe is all one country...... The French will always look after themselves, same as everyone else does


I'm well aware that Europe is not one country—or, to put it more accurately, that there is no single, continent-wide European railway system. What that has to do with this article, however, is beyond me.


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