[mrgoldenbrown]

>The big reason that passenger rail, even overnight, isn't as economical in north america...

That's a choice the country has made by subsidizing some kinds of transit more than others. Rail could be cheaper if we priced in externalities.

[chgs]

Why would really be cheaper if externalities were priced in - I can see cars and planes being more expensive but how would rail be cheaper?

[Retric]

Economies of scale.

If alternatives get more expensive more people use rail, and the cost per rail rider drops.

[palmfacehn]

Historically US passenger service was secondary to express mail service. Without express mail service provided by the same trains, passenger service became unprofitable.

[Retric]

The timeline roughly matches up with that argument, but mail and people transitioned for similar reasons.

[chgs]

Or it just means nobody travels.

[ghaff]

People will travel one way or another. They'll just prioritize the factors that are important to them.

[potato3732842]

Or the whole market shrinks because demand is fairly elastic.

[ghaff]

To some degree.

At least in the US, people will tend to drive--perhaps shorter distances--if long distance travel gets too expensive.