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Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

swisscom.ch

51–60 of 362 posts

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#51

Just as a fun thought experiment, what /new/ things could be possible if we had 1Terabit/s?

tricky one. i've had 1Gbit internet here in nz for a few years now, and heck I'm usually on wireless which sorta caps out about 20MB/s (eventually I'll spring for a new router), but when they installed my connection at my current place and the ONT they put in was basically a router (even had wireless antennas on it). I asked why, and the fella said that when they upgrade me to 4Gbit, the specific ONT he installed would be able to utilise it and won't need the router anymore.

honestly, it's more than enough to have 50 TVs streaming Netflix or YouTube, the computers downloading stuff, phones being used and so on.

I am really not sure how 1Tbit would even matter for 99% of the population. Maybe if streaming (actual) 4k became a thing. Perhaps for remote-gaming, but latency would need to be very low. I cannot imagine the latency on a train.

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For anywhere further than Boston -> NY, the flight is considerably cheaper though.

SF-LA SF-Sacramento SF-Tahoe SF-Napa SEA-PDX Austin-Dallas-Houston LA-Las Vegas-Phoenix-Tucson And I am not talking snail Amtrak 70 mph train. I am suggesting 150 mph that runs in most Europe. What is holding US back in public transport?

>What is holding US back in public transport?

Rail freight transport.

What is holding Europe in rail freight transport? Passenger rail. You choose one or the other. Personally I think America made (or fell into) the correct decision.

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#53
post #4

I would honestly pay significantly higher taxes if we could get Swiss-quality train service in parts of the US (and especially if they have good internet). When I traveled Boston to NY in the past, compare my flight experience vs Amtrak. Flight: - Take $25 Uber to airport and get there 1 hour early to go through security and wait. - Fly to JFK (1h 20m) - land, wait to get off, go through terminal again, then take $50…

The main problem with the US interstate train system is that it's run on freight train lines. Amtrak and Acela do not actually own the railway they use and they can only go a certain speed due to the grade of the track.

I don't think you would be willing to pay the amount of taxes you would need to, to completely redo the railways haha.

Anyways Amtrak are barely turning a profit as it is and while it would be great to have Euro quality train lines, the economics aren't there. Even in Europe they're having a hard time competing with flixbus.

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Switzerland moved 40% of all freight traffic kilometerd to the rails too, which is really a lot. ( https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfsstatic/dam/assets/10547450/maste... )

You're going to have to provide some context. I don't know what you're trying to argue.

Just wanted to clarify that this is not valid for the whole continent and it would work for western europe to move the traffic on rails.

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#55
post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Leaves on the tracks is no joke, I found those Network Rail posters pretty amusing :) https://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/news/leaves-on-the-...

I am now imagining some description of brush extensions on the front of cow catchers that just take a wire brush and scrub the fire out of the track in front of the train to get leaves off the track and scrub of some of the crushed wet leaves off of it as the train goes along.

I think the brushes would wear out pretty quickly.

They use high pressure (1500 Bar!) water jets instead, and apply sand to the rails: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/stories/leaf-busting-trains-pr...

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Switzerland moved 40% of all freight traffic kilometerd to the rails too, which is really a lot. ( https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfsstatic/dam/assets/10547450/maste... )

You're going to have to provide some context. I don't know what you're trying to argue.

A 40% share of tonne-km by rail in Switzerland is similar to the figure for the USA. It's other European countries that have too much road freight.

Note that ships are much more used in Europe.

https://transportgeography.org/?page_id=1828

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#57
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One interesting thing about the Swiss system is they've prioritized reliable connectivity and frequent service over high-speed service. They do have some higher speed rail, but nothing even as fast as their neighbors in France or Germany. I feel like we have a thing for high speed rail here in the US as an aspirational goal, but maybe we should be aiming for reliable regional connectivity as a first step. Austin to S…

Switzerland is also very small, as countries go. The longest train route is IC 1 (St. Gallen Geneva) going from the (almost) easternmost point to the westernmost point, and it’s 4 hours (it does have a few higher speed sections close to Bern). They simply don’t need much speed if they run frequent and reliable trains.

Size is never the reason.

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#58
post #4

I would honestly pay significantly higher taxes if we could get Swiss-quality train service in parts of the US (and especially if they have good internet). When I traveled Boston to NY in the past, compare my flight experience vs Amtrak. Flight: - Take $25 Uber to airport and get there 1 hour early to go through security and wait. - Fly to JFK (1h 20m) - land, wait to get off, go through terminal again, then take $50…

The main problem with the US interstate train system is that it's run on freight train lines. Amtrak and Acela do not actually own the railway they use and they can only go a certain speed due to the grade of the track. I don't think you would be willing to pay the amount of taxes you would need to, to completely redo the railways haha. Anyways Amtrak are barely turning a profit as it is and while it would be great t…

Roads don't break even, why should we expect trains to?

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#59
post #2

Swiss mobile internet is fantastic. It works in trains, it works in the mountains, it works in the cities, it works everywhere. OK, the country is small, but still it is quite an achievement.

Meanwhile in Canada, our providers use the “it’s a big country so that’s why it’s stupidly expensive in the few percent of the territory that’s covered” excuse. Meanwhile, in Europe you can take a train and have good coverage in the middle of nowhere through a base station that probably sees 20 minutes of heavy use per day...

German here. The latter statement doesn't really hold for us. Super patchy coverage on trains.

Re: Stable 1.2 Gigabit/s Internet achieved in moving train in Switzerland

#60

Amazing that they can achieve that yet I'm in the bay area and I'm in a never-ending war with Comcast to achieve 50mbp/s

Hmm... This is not possible. The entire bay area has 1 Gbps capability offered by Comcast.
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