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Comment by hjk05 | Hacker News Reader

Shaving 20minutes off of a trip that takes more than an hour is not comparable to going from horses to cars. Current routes and travel times are perfectly fine when you ask the consumers, they just want it affordable. No one wants to take the train when flying costs almost the same.

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>No one wants to take the train when flying costs almost the same.

Sure they do if it's more pleasant. In the US, the train on the Northeast Corridor takes maybe a bit longer depending upon the specifics than flying and costs in the same ballpark (depending on whether Acela or regular coach, parking, etc.) And it's at capacity at peak times.

When you're not talking big money in the scheme of things, many will take whatever mode of transportation is most convenient and comfortable--especially for business travel.

If you really are very price sensitive, you're probably taking Megabus or something similar.

Doesn't seem fine to me. Denmark has some of the highest taxes on cars, high taxes in general, is overall expensive and increasingly has dysfunctional politics and uncompetitive infrastructure [0]. Part of the benefit of being a small country is that you can exercise a greater degree of control. With a suitably high tax rate you can lower the barrier to entry to increase participation and make the most out of your population. It if of course up to each country to select their model, but I don't see the endgame of Denmark not upgrading their infrastructure. That isn't something they can win at. Even the US arguably can't anymore.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-speed_rail_in_Europe#/med...

I personally am willing to pay up to a 200% premium to take the train versus flying if the length of the overall trip isn't more than 2x the length of an overall air trip (including security, getting to the airport, waiting in lines, waiting for baggage, late takeoffs, getting suck in holding patterns, extra security scans, etc).

A fast train is always a healthier and more pleasant experience than an airplane. Hint: trains have windows.

Disclosure: I'm a private pilot and have lifetime status on two major carriers. I still hate air travel.

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