If High-Speed Rail is Made, Will Riders Come?

An empty train caring only seats expends close to the same amount of energy as a single-occupancy car, or low occupancy plane, reports Saquib Rahim, Climate Wire reporter who's story was published in The New York Times.

"A packed train, on the other hand, moves its riders more efficiently than a car or plane can.

"And the authority is counting on its trains to be packed.

"By 2030, it projects, 88 million to 117 million passengers will ride the system each year. If a high-speed train didn't exist, Californians would take 33 million flights that year; with the train available, they would take 21 million."