What do you expect, Its England. Small country, decent roads, Cambodia on the other hand is a small country with shit roads and an almost new Snooky-PP railroad rehabbed to take the containers from the port to PP. Why build a big dry container port for the railroad that is right next to the deep water port if your not going to use it? Answer: People lining their pockets when it was being built and the same now that its not used for rail traffic, but the old container trucks keep rolling on Hwy#4 (Death Highway To Hell) Can you say $$$$$?

BTW/ America may be the only country in the world that is digging up train tracks and using the grades as bike/running paths instead of expanding the rail system. The American 1950's era freeway system is falling apart and in large part due to big/heavy interstate truck traffic.

Plus GB has ports everywhere & a good commuter train network. Freight would muck things up.

Sailorman wrote: BTW/ America may be the only country in the world that is digging up train tracks and using the grades as bike/running paths instead of expanding the rail system. The American 1950's era freeway system is falling apart and in large part due to big/heavy interstate truck traffic.

Rail is still viable in the US... the problem is that coal, oil and grain dominate the tracks and there's no room for other cargo.

OrangeDragon wrote:

Sailorman wrote: BTW/ America may be the only country in the world that is digging up train tracks and using the grades as bike/running paths instead of expanding the rail system. The American 1950's era freeway system is falling apart and in large part due to big/heavy interstate truck traffic.

Rail is still viable in the US... the problem is that coal, oil and grain dominate the tracks and there's no room for other cargo.

Didn't Warren Buffet take a big stake in U.S. freight railroad in the recent past, he can usually spot a good long term play.

Cowshed Cowboy wrote: Didn't Warren Buffet take a big stake in U.S. freight railroad in the recent past, he can usually spot a good long term play.

He bought an entire railway and has all but locked in the rail transport of the entire oil-shale fracking output in the Dakotas.

the roads in USA have been undergoing major upgrades since 2008.

LA once had a vibrant light rail system- it wast privately owned by 2 companies.

Detroit interests bought them up, shut them down, and started bus lines. This happened nationally.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Mo ... conspiracy

I imagine the truck owners running this route on NH4 would be quite wealthy and exercise a lot of influence.

GM's subsidiary National City Lines did it all over the country, not just LA. Only Newark, Boston, Philly, NO, & Pitt survived. You can see the old LA streetcar lines watching the 3 Stooges & Little Rascals.

Just like the airport Vietnam Airlines monopoly in Snookyville, until the container truck monopoly is broken its the rich get richer and people die on the death-highway-to-hell.

The UK's rail network is amongst the worst in Europe. It has been in gradual decline ever since privatization. If you want great rail networks - try France or Germany. You might also like to see Japan's network. Even China's rapidly blossoming rail network is better than the UK's.

i dont buy this idea that the truck companies are bribing their way to business. bribing who? its not a monopoly. Cartel maybe

the factories dont care if it goes by truck, train or hot air balloon as long as it gets there. the cheapskate truck companies run 2nd hand, castoff trucks at the end of their lives, exported from USA. cheap fuel, low drivers wages, lack of enforcement on maintainance and taxes

they can undercut the railway on price, no conspiracy needed

the way they could change things is easy - road 4 is a toll road, jack the price for trucks up. make it over $100 or whatever necessary to make the train the cheaper option. it should happen, given the delays and accidents happening

but that goes against everything this goverment stands for, they are all about the free market