[jonathankoren]

Because the US has a uniquely mismanaged procurement process, construction unions that insist on 4x the number of workers, and myopic regulations. The whole system has become warped to slow down and prevent construction, while at the same time maximize costs. It’s absurd.

Let’s take California HSR for example. Multiple environmental impact studies and appeals, and even afterwards, every city on the peninsula demanded a different system to install the tracks. One wants elevated tracks, another wants a trench, another insists the train be at grade, yet another wants it moved miles away, finally someone wants a commuter rail stop.

We can’t build anything in this country. It’s disgusting.

https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2018/01/why-its-so-ex...

https://theweek.com/articles/449646/why-expensive-build-brid...

[jackcosgrove]

Don't forget that Japanese politicians are addicted to public works spending and have been for generations. Great infrastructure is nice, but is it worth having a public debt that is 260% of GDP? Japan's population is also shrinking so a lot of the infrastructure will be fallow in the future. Both the USA and Japan have political problems with infrastructure procurement, just in completely different ways.

[jonathankoren]

The amount of relative debt is irrelevant here. What is important, is that the US consistently pays more, and gets less.

Regardless of its merits, Spain spent 40 billion euros and got a functioning nationwide high speed train network.[0] California was looking to spend twice that and get a single line, and probably would have ended up spending even more if it was completed.

[0] https://elpais.com/elpais/2015/03/26/inenglish/1427383199_99...

[rakkhi]

But the USA has $22T govt debt although "only" 105% Govt debt to GDP as of Jan 2019 (excluding unfunded liabilities like social security) and projects like this where infrastructure is not built. Neither situation is great but I think as a tax payer I would rather have the fast trains in Japan

[njarboe]

Well, with negative interest rates, the more you are in debt the more you earn. Have interest rate go back up to 5% and things get very bad quickly.