Submitted by Pardon_my_baconess t3_xxf63s in todayilearned
ThenaJuno t1_irbqkcu wrote
Yes, but the USA has more than 3 times the total area.
Straight-faced_solo t1_irbw44n wrote
The big problem is that it's all freight. Our freight lines work well and are actually pretty nice. A little old, but it's still a fully functioning rail system. When it comes to moving people though, we just pretend the U,S can't build rail.
skywrites8 t1_ircgp87 wrote
CSX basically has a monopoly on U.S. rail. They've had a longstanding battle with Amtrack over passenger rail. The rail system in the U.S. has almost always been a monopoly system, owned by $$$$$ freight companies. You can't just decide you want to lay down passenger tracks too, the system is set up to not allow it and the theoretical cost of adding to the rail system is astronomical, far more than many American towns and cities could afford. Very purposefully set so.
emaw63 t1_ircpy8j wrote
Fucking infuriating too given how easy it is for cities to throw down a new highway through a neighborhood or to widen an existing one to 20 lanes. Can’t ever seem to make it work for rail though 🙃
skywrites8 t1_ircri0v wrote
It's all about where the funding comes from- lots of funding for local highways. Not many want to go to bat with freight companies who rule the rail. Infuriating indeed :/
Also, highways were a very convenient way to keep black people out of white communities. Very important note in why the interstate system got so much support.
dprophet32 t1_ire4vo8 wrote
Is there nothing in America that is above naked profiteering?
turniphat t1_ircdtxg wrote
No. Europe is slightly larger than the US.
https://mapfight.xyz/compare/europe-vs-us/
The United States is about 2x as large as European Union
[deleted] t1_irj1mp7 wrote
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[deleted] t1_irj1ra1 wrote
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graycatfat t1_irj32v8 wrote
correct but I'm not clicking those wacky links
10,000,000-10,400,000 is Europe (3,900,000-4,000,000) sq mi
depends which countries like Georgia you count for the 100,000-200,000 , but mainly how much toward the Ural mountains in Russia you count, and the water area in Scandinavia
4,236,351 sq km European Union (1,635,664 sq. mi)
https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/european-union/#introduction
9,833,517 sq km United States (3,796,742 sq mi)
https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/united-states/#geography
3,796,742 / 1,635,664 ≈ 2.32
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_European_countries_by_area
https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/field/area/country-comparison
https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/largest-countries-in-europe
https://www.quora.com/How-large-is-the-United-States-in-area-compared-to-Europe
The United States has a land and inland water area over 2.32 times the size of European Union
Pardon_my_baconess OP t1_irbrka0 wrote
Europe has 100 million more in population
btinfinity t1_irbvia8 wrote
That doesn't make the land mass any bigger
Hot-Specialist-6824 t1_irbrjpc wrote
No, the United States is just under one and a half times the geographic size of Europe. US almost 3.8 mill sq miles, EU just over 1.6 mill sq miles.
WBurkhart90 t1_irbsqyb wrote
You realize that's 2.5x the size roughly, right? 1.6 x 2 is 3.2 mill sq miles.
sektabox t1_irbyrrn wrote
> EU just over 1.6 mill sq miles
The OP title says "Europe" - not EU.
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