• balderdash@lemmy.zip
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    1 year ago

    China wants unity, even in places where it doesn’t make economic sense.

    edit: 100% downvotes are coming from people that don’t know the situation. The CCP wants fast travel to major population centers even when the rail line isn’t profitable.

    • CheeseNoodle@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Isn’t that a good thing? sounds like the rail is being run as a public utility rather than a business. And its still likely profitable if you average the cost over all the lines.

      • balderdash@lemmy.zip
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        1 year ago

        I never said it was a good/bad thing. I’m saying the Chinese gov. isn’t as concerned with profit. Which explains the difference between California and China

    • zephyreks@lemmy.ml
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      1 year ago

      It makes economic sense but not financial sense. Railways are almost always profitable once considering second and third order effects.

      It’s the same story with Amtrak, so I’m not sure why people are so confused. Amtrak loses money on every train that’s not the NEC.

    • frezik
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      1 year ago

      Rail lines aren’t supposed to be profitable. They cause positive externalities to make everything else more profitable. That’s what all infrastructure does.