As America's plans for high-speed rail move haltingly forward--with the California line expected to be one of the first to open--China moves full-speed ahead with their vast bullet train network. But a report on DailyFinance.com says that timetable just shows how far advanced America's society and economy is. If you think eminent domain is bad here, you may want to avoid moving to China. Residents of Tsoi Yuen, a village in the path of the proposed Guangzhou line, were recently offered a choice by officials: "Accept money to move or don't accept money to move. Either way, the train was going through their town." Cheap Chinese labor, where construction workers are paid about $1 an hour, also expedites the rail network there. There's also a lack of concern for worker safety, according to the piece. While America's transcontinental railroad was built in six years, "the workplace safety standards of the 19th century -- or of much of contemporary China -- would appall contemporary Americans." Oh, and many Chinese don't have access to cars or airports meaning the train is their only option and the operators can name their price. Also, the Chinese bullet trains don't have to turn profits in the way the Americans trains do and the planners and officials don't have to worry about angry voters tossing them on their butts. Basically, the article says the hoops we will be jumping through to get our system off the ground just means the American political and economic system is less efficient than China's, but "more mature -- and more preferable." [Image via Opinione]
· China's High-Speed Rail Better Than America's [AOL Finance]
· Koreans Seek to Build California High-Speed Rail [Curbed LA]
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