It already does compete with air travel handily on plenty of these routes, but there are some really super cheap flights around the EU and HSR is still basically run like a profit driven business that has to recoup its significant capital costs (building the system). Flying can often be cheaper even if the time you take to travel is roughly the same or even comes out in favor of the train.
It already does compete with air travel handily on plenty of these routes, but there are some really super cheap flights around the EU and HSR is still basically run like a profit driven business that has to recoup its significant capital costs (building the system). Flying can often be cheaper even if the time you take to travel is roughly the same or even comes out in favor of the train.