Warren Buffett and the Return of the Railroads
Sky-high energy prices, increasingly crowded commuter corridors, and worries about the environment are setting the stage for trains to thunder once again across the US moving commerce and people, predicts Harvard University professor John R. Stilgoe.
"Train travel will supplant highway and air travel in the next few decades. Furthermore, electric railroads will increasingly be used to distribute freight items -- such as coal and grain -- as well as mail and express packages."Sounds romantic. But have you heard of any major infrastructure or rolling stock investments being made by the railroads or government? Where's the proof of a railroad renaissance?
The signs are scattered, Stilgoe says, but they add up to a powerful trend: smart money is chugging toward trains. He provides his insights in this interview with the Harvard University Gazette.
Here are some of the dots he connects.
- The Buffett Factor. Crazy-successful investor Warren Buffett last year bought 39 million shares, or 11 percent, of Burlington Northern Santa Fe, and the prices of railroad stocks generally are doing well.
- Property Dealings. Investors are snapping up properties in the Midwest that are adjacent to old railroad lines.
- Political Pressure. More local governments in auto-intensive cities such as St. Louis and Atlanta are conducting railroad feasibility studies.
- Improving Technology. Railroading is high-tech industry, Stilgoe says. "We have the technology to revitalize outdated tracks, to turn them into electrified rails that can support high-speed, on-time trains."
Do you agree that railroads are making a comeback?
(California State Railroad Museum image by Paraflyer, CC 2.0)