{"id":108262,"date":"2020-04-08T10:09:49","date_gmt":"2020-04-08T14:09:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=108262"},"modified":"2020-04-08T10:24:28","modified_gmt":"2020-04-08T14:24:28","slug":"why-cant-america-have-a-better-passenger-train-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/why-cant-america-have-a-better-passenger-train-system\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Can\u2019t America Have a Better Passenger Train System?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last summer I traveled to England and Scotland, and my life\u2014or at least my outlook on travel\u2014changed.<\/p>\n

Why? Because I experienced the magic that is traveling by train. From an overnight sleeper train between London and Glasgow, to the channel-crossing, high-speed Eurostar to Paris, to the scenic 4\u00bd hour trip (which would take more than seven hours to drive!) from Edinburgh to London, my husband and I came home with one overriding question:<\/p>\n

Why can\u2019t America have trains like that??<\/p>\n

My childhood memories are filled with family road trips. Freedom from school, seeing new places, visiting family and friends\u2014these were the highlights. The downsides? Being stuck in the backseat with my two brothers for hours on end. No escape. No opportunity to stretch our legs or use the restroom until our parents agreed to pull over at a rest stop.<\/p>\n

Although I no longer have to worry about my brothers crowding my personal space, adulthood has brought new downsides to road trips. Driving long distances gives me nearly unbearable neck and back pain. There are the monotonous stretches of highway that cause a drowsiness even a good playlist can\u2019t cure. And of course, there\u2019s the tension when one driver makes the third wrong turn and no, they are not lost, but if the person in the passenger seat would just be better at giving directions…<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot I love about road trips. It\u2019s not just about the end destination,<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Don\u2019t get me wrong. There\u2019s a lot I love about road trips. It\u2019s not just about the end destination\u2014getting to experience a new city or seeing an awe-inspiring national park or spending time with family.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s about the journey, too. While parts of a long drive may be boring, there\u2019s a lot of beauty to see too. I love watching the scenery pass by\u2014observing Florida\u2019s flat, cypress- and palm-filled landscapes turn to Georgia\u2019s pine trees and gentle hills, which transform into North Carolina\u2019s majestic Blue Ridge Mountains\u2014while listening to a new podcast and eating way too much junk food. I love long conversations with friends and road trip games.<\/p>\n

For most of my life, there have only been two options when I wanted to travel: driving, with all its positives and negatives, or flying. Traveling by plane comes with its own list of pros and cons. Sure, you get to leave the navigation and work to a professional, you don\u2019t have to pull over and delay your arrival even more each time you need to use the restroom, and you get where you\u2019re going faster.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, instead of being crammed into the back seat of a Camry with your siblings, you\u2019re packed tightly into economy seating with a hundred other people. Airport security is a nightmare. And do you really want to use that airplane toilet?<\/p>\n

And then there are trains. What I love about traveling by train:<\/p>\n