> as most trains start and stop in city centers while airports are sometimes very remote from the cities.
You write that as a negative, but for me that's just an even bigger bonus. The only thing I want from a city center is how to get out of the city center. I never actually want to go there.
I have not personally noticed much difference in commute costs plane vs train. Car trips, taxis, and public transport, have all been around the same time and cost to both. And the plane tickets I've looked at have been at all kinds of hours, early, middle of the day, and late. Exactly the same with the train, there's no specific pattern. (Obviously this is very specific to the location.)
You have a point with the food, it's easier to bring on a train - luggage as well, but then again the plane is so much faster you don't need to bring as much food.
And I do factor in wait time for an airport, very short trips are faster and cheaper in your car, longer trips are better in a plane. The train just doesn't really fit in anywhere - it's the same speed, or slower, than a car, and less convenient. (Even if the train is physically faster, getting to/from the station adds so much time the car works out faster.)
I book a lot of Spirit flights, and not only are they cheaper than a train, they are even cheaper than a bus! Every one in a while I go back and check all 3 options, and the plane and (occasionally) car win every time.
If you want people to take more train trips they need to cost 1/10 of what they currently do, or at least be 5 times faster. Without that, well, people just aren't going to use them.
You write that as a negative, but for me that's just an even bigger bonus. The only thing I want from a city center is how to get out of the city center. I never actually want to go there.
I have not personally noticed much difference in commute costs plane vs train. Car trips, taxis, and public transport, have all been around the same time and cost to both. And the plane tickets I've looked at have been at all kinds of hours, early, middle of the day, and late. Exactly the same with the train, there's no specific pattern. (Obviously this is very specific to the location.)
You have a point with the food, it's easier to bring on a train - luggage as well, but then again the plane is so much faster you don't need to bring as much food.
And I do factor in wait time for an airport, very short trips are faster and cheaper in your car, longer trips are better in a plane. The train just doesn't really fit in anywhere - it's the same speed, or slower, than a car, and less convenient. (Even if the train is physically faster, getting to/from the station adds so much time the car works out faster.)
I book a lot of Spirit flights, and not only are they cheaper than a train, they are even cheaper than a bus! Every one in a while I go back and check all 3 options, and the plane and (occasionally) car win every time.
If you want people to take more train trips they need to cost 1/10 of what they currently do, or at least be 5 times faster. Without that, well, people just aren't going to use them.