The current state of U.S. transit

Posted: July 16, 2026

The United States has more rail lines than any other country in the world, but those miles transport goods rather than people. Building out dedicated infrastructure for passenger trains and buses on a scale comparable to places like Sydney or Hong Kong in would cost about $4.6 trillion and take 20 years to construct, according to a study published by Transportation for America earlier this year.

Experts argue that the comparatively higher cost of infrastructure and a challenging regulatory framework in the U.S. make building out extensive passenger rail much more difficult. Additionally, passenger rail generally has tight profit margins. 

Countries like Spain, Australia, and China have fostered successful intracity transit systems and high-speed rail systems between major cities. Why hasn’t the U.S. followed suit?

The decline of U.S. passenger rail in the 20th century 

Before the mid-20th century, the United States had a flourishing passenger rail system. Dozens of railroad companies connected cities across the country. Towns grew alongside tracks like ancient cities springing up on the fertile riverside. 

The first railroad to exist in the United States, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, was chartered in 1827. It started in the east and wound its way through West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and eventually down into Missouri. Over the next century, new railroad tracks were laid, and more and more people became patrons of passenger rail. 

Passenger miles peaked in 1920 at 47 million. But passenger-rail miles dropped steeply in the coming decades (excluding a bump in rail travel during WWII) as Americans started opting for cars, buses, and planes. U.S. investment began flowing toward highways and airports.

Railroad companies abandoned 1,149 miles of railroads in 1957, double the number from the year before. The economic situation for railroad companies was becoming dire. While freight operations remained profitable, passenger rail had become a burden. 

The urgency to save passenger rail came to a head when, facing bankruptcy, the Penn Central line planned to discontinue 34 passenger routes. To prevent passenger rail from disappearing altogether, Congress created the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, renamed Amtrak. Struggling railroads could join, contribute equipment to Amtrak’s network, and be released from their obligation to operate passenger rail systems. 

With the creation of Amtrak, the U.S. managed to avoid losing passenger rail altogether.But there are several reasons why the industry hasn’t experienced the same level of development as in European or Asian countries.

Why isn’t there more passenger rail in the U.S.? 

Cities in the U.S. are relatively spread out compared to those in Europe. There’s just more ground to cover. Furthermore, zoning laws that separate residential communities from grocery stores and work create residential sprawl, making people more dependent on cars to get around. 

Compared to other countries, the difference in transit expense is even more evident. New York’s Second Avenue subway, for instance, cost $2.6 billion per mile, whereas Copenhagen undertook a project for $323 million per mile and Paris completed another for $160 million per mile. 

According to Brooks’ research, one diagnosis for the discrepancy is the rise of the “citizen voice.” Other researchers agree. “Once the construction process starts, people complain. And those complaints lead to lawsuits,” NYU professor and transit researcher Eric Goldwyn said in an interview with Vox several years ago.

Places like Paris, Seoul and Shanghai have also been constructing transit for decades. New York, on the other hand, “built its subway at a breakneck pace until 1940 and then cooled it,” Goldwyn said. Without the learned experience of other countries, every new project now in the works has a learning curve, and it requires governing agencies to start from scratch.

The future of U.S. rail transit

Despite the challenges, projects like Texas Central, a high-speed line connecting Dallas to Houston, are still being attempted. Modeled after the Tokaido Shinkansen line in Japan, the 240-mile line is intended to travel at speeds up to 205 mph—a 90-minute trip. 

The rail line could reduce traffic by 15,000 cars a day, offer a lower-emissions alternative for travel, and set the standard for future high-speed rail projects in the U.S.

Amtrak, meanwhile, is continuing to hold steady and saw a 5% increase in ridership from 2024 to 2025. The corporation plans to launch a new fleet of long-distance railcars in the coming years. 

In an announcement by Amtrak earlier this year, the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation said, “With these new cars, Amtrak will finally replace its aging fleet and provide American travelers with the world class rail service they deserve.”