What were the main reasons that rail passenger transportation declined in the United States after 1920?

The problem with the railroads was that they were losing market share by the middle of the 20th Century. The automobile replaced a lot of short-haul passenger business, and airlines were beginning to take away passengers on the long-haul market, which used to be dominated by rail.



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By 1920 the United States possessed the most extensive railroad network in the world, with more than 250,000 miles of track. The railroads faced increasing problems, however, including the aftereffects of government operation during World War I, increased labor unrest, and growing competition from highway traffic.

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Passenger trains were expensive to operate. They required more crew than a freight train, the passenger stations were expensive to heat, light, maintain and occupied prime real estate that was assessed property taxes.

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1960s Railroad Mergers. Though the 1960s were preeminently the decade in which the privately operated passenger train languished and then died, other significant forces were at work, changing forever the face of railroading.

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City congestion and lack of metros. With the expansion of the national highway network after the Second World War, urban areas in the US were increasingly built to support road rather than rail travel. City centres were places to get in and out of, rather than move in and around.

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The train stopped the first time when a herd of buffaloes charged across the railway track.

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For numerous reasons, putting goods on trucks is simply cheaper. One potential reason is that a train car can hold about half as much weight as a semitruck, due to the weight of the car itself. While it is true that single trains can carry far more cars, this still limits what can be transported in this manner.

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The most dramatic confrontation was the Shopcraft Strike. Throughout the war, there had been inflation and rising employment, but deflation, recession, and decreasing traffic beginning in the middle of 1920 led railroads to furlough workers and cut wages.

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Most common cause of rail failure is the fatigue fracture which is due to imperfections present in the material or due to crack formation during service. Thus successful performance of rails is based on their resistance to crack initiation and crack propagation.

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Travelling by train in the USA is an excellent way to see vast swathes of this vast country, especially if you're on a budget. While the USA's national rail operator Amtrak won't get you everywhere, it's pretty darn extensive, with thirty routes throughout travelling to over 500 destinations across 46 states.

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