One should also think about what helps people and the environment the most: prestigious and expensive high speed rail, or a dense local public transport infrastructure. In Germany there is a big controversy about a prestigious multi-billion railway project called Stuttgart 21* that will mainly benefit a small group of long distance business travellers, while at the same local public transport that serves millions is neglected, with the consequence thatshort distance commutes have become slower.

I guess what I want to say is: don’t do high speed rail in isolation, but start with the local public transport first.

*Also infamous for an immense cost explosion and business profiting from public land sold too cheap.