High Speed Trains are Killing the European Railway Network SOURCE: Low-Tech Magazine

The EuroCity network in 1987 (left) and in 2010 (right). Western Europe now opts for high-speed trains. Maps from Wikipedia Commons.

A 2009 study by Spanish researchers analysing the economic impact of high speed rail in Europe [10] puts it this way:

"Building, maintaining and operating high speed rail may substantially compromise both the transport policy of a country and the development of its transport sector for decades... An exhaustive revision of the specific economic literature shows that the research effort devoted to the economic analysis of investing in high speed railways is almost insignificant... It deserves a closer look, well beyond the technological hype and the demand figures... Deciding to reject the construction of a high speed rail line is not necessarily a position against progress."

In less than 10 years, Spain has built the most extensive high speed rail network in Europe. Today, the country is virtually broke and can hardly afford to keep its trains running.