TGV - Liaison Montréal - New-York

[WestAust]

Cataclaw:

 

Your first graphic only shows US production and import, not even the reserves. Also, US are far from being the holders of the largest reserves (13th actually according to the CIA factbook)

 

Also, on your second graphic, it is probably normal that discoveries will go down, as most of this planet has already been scouted. But again, the important number is what has been discovered already.

[Habsfan]

Guys, this is a great discussion. Learning alot of things about oil and oil producitons and reserves, however, this does reamain a discussion about the TGV from MTL to NYC.

 

Sorry to be such a bitch, but we gotta respect the rules! ;)

[Cyrus]

But what if it is a diesel-powered TGV

[Cataclaw]

Habsfan is right, we've strayed a bit off topic here.

 

I believe there are oil-related forums. Perhaps we can continue this discussion there?

 

On the topic of the TGV, i think it has to be an all-or-nothing thing.

 

If you spend billions just to build a train that is 50% faster than the current train, then it's a waste of money. If you want the NYC-MTL TGV to be attractive, it has to be very fast. It needs to be 220km/h or more. It has to make the trip to NY be 3.5 hours or less. That's just my view... make the train fast and i'll consider taking it, otherwise i'll just drive down there, it's the cheapest option.

[Cyrus]

I still think we need to just address the elephant in the room which is the border situation. Even with a TGV you'd probably still have at least a 1-2 hr delay at the border like AMTRAK does now... Of course with the "the 9/11 terrorists came from Canada!" idiot running the DHS that seems unlikely.

 

http://www.quebecnewyorkblog.org/2010/07/long-slow-ride-to-montreal.html

 

5:50pm - Border crossing

Crossing the border is quite an experience. As many as six agents boarded the train and it was done in record time. Eighty minutes instead of ninety! The agents were courteous and asked the usual questions. No incidents. Now we know we have a problem when a train stops for as much time. Think of cars waiting at border crossings on a holiday weekend. But this is everyday with no traffic as an excuse. Neighbor Theo tells me that he is flying back.

 

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/amtrak-guest-rewards/405928-new-york-montreal-border-crossing.html

 

http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?c=AM_Content_C&pagename=am%2FLayout&cid=1241267400657

Modifié 4 novembre 2010 par Cyrus

[Cataclaw]

Good point Cyrus. The border wait times are ridiculous. For bus travel it's the same deal, taking no less than 30 minutes up to 2 hours to clear the darn border.

 

Why don't they just do the necessary checks in Canada at the bus station and then proceed express into the USA, except for maybe a short 5 minute stop just to confirm everything is in order? You might say "well somebody might board the bus after it left..." well then just put a security camera on the bus that records whenever the bus' doors open. When the bus gets to the border, staff can check the security cameras and confirm with the bus driver that nobody else came on board. Additionally, when the bus leaves Montreal, staff at the bus terminal can electronically send data about who's on board the bus to the border crossing, so that those people can then just do a quick check to confirm nobody has left or come on the bus.

 

There's ways to make this quick and simple. The security will never be foolproof, but then again, if somebody really wants to cross into the USA, it ain't that hard. I know personally a half-dozen places out in the country in southern Quebec where you can just cross. Dirt roads that extend into the USA, or even just go through the woods. Heck, at Derby Line / Rock Village, you can just bypass the border crossing by driving through the town, using local streets, which is half inside the USA and half inside Canada. What i'm getting at : if you're a terrorist and you WANT to get in the USA, you'll do it. You'll find a way. In the meantime, we're hurting our economies by putting 2 hour waits at the border...

[Cyrus]

They could just replace the bus with a duplicate Alqaedabus... they could call it Black Hound

 

But with a train it is pretty simple to just "seal" it just like a plane, or for that matter, cargo...

[Habsfan]

Habsfan is right, we've strayed a bit off topic here.

 

I believe there are oil-related forums. Perhaps we can continue this discussion there?

 

On the topic of the TGV, i think it has to be an all-or-nothing thing.

 

If you spend billions just to build a train that is 50% faster than the current train, then it's a waste of money. If you want the NYC-MTL TGV to be attractive, it has to be very fast. It needs to be 220km/h or more. It has to make the trip to NY be 3.5 hours or less. That's just my view... make the train fast and i'll consider taking it, otherwise i'll just drive down there, it's the cheapest option.

 

Agreed. I'd even go a little further. I'd say the train has to be able to do 250Km/h at the minimum. Make the trip to NYC under 3 hours, now that would be worth it!

[Habsfan]

I still think we need to just address the elephant in the room which is the border situation. Even with a TGV you'd probably still have at least a 1-2 hr delay at the border like AMTRAK does now... Of course with the "the 9/11 terrorists came from Canada!" idiot running the DHS that seems unlikely.

 

They could have a duty/border check at teh train station(like they do in airports). That way you wouldn't have to stop at the border.

[WestAust]

Agreed. I'd even go a little further. I'd say the train has to be able to do 250Km/h at the minimum. Make the trip to NYC under 3 hours, now that would be worth it!

 

Does the topography between montreal and ny allows such speed? From what i remember driving down there,it would be a 20 billion dollar thing to drill tunnels/build bridges through the addirondacks