While the Cleveland Clinic goes for a 5,000 car parking monstrosity, and Detroit goes intentionally bankrupt to dump its auto unions and its pensions and move offshore, and ODOT spends a Billion on a new "signature" interstate bridge, and our NEO rail service goes further into the ditch, Europe is on top of high speed train technology [1]. Look at the NYTimes’ story re: French TGV.
This is particularly ironic because the USA has the wide open spaces which are most compatible with high speed rail. Yet the USA does inefficient, polluting cars, very fuel inefficient aircraft, but not rail. Think the industry lobby are the reason?! Of course, our federal government does what it is told, and inefficient travel is a money maker for the highway construction lobby and the gas lobby and the auto lobby. Citizens, get in the back seat. No, actually, get in the trunk and close the lid. You aren't relevant. And neither is the atmosphere.
Like wind turbines, we wouldn't know how to build high speed trains in the USA anyway. Unless GE is building them in Erie - yeah, right!
Links:
[1] http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-France-Fast-Train-Record.html?_r=1&oref=slogin