Mississippi vs Rail

[kalos72]

So my group was talking through some of our ideas for pacification of the US and this question came up.

Originally, we were just going to use the Mississippi River to make way from New Orleans to the North. But then we realized there is a railroad that runs all the way from New Orleans to Chicago and a major highway right next to most of it.

And it keep going from New Orleans to LA as well...

I am thinking that the railway might be more efficient and easier to get back on line. Amtrak has alot of line running some really strategic paths...

But it IS the Mississippi after all.

[kato13]

I think when you start you would use the river as it would require less work to get things going. You also can move greater volumes using less fuel and man power. Dredging and port facilities will be a concern, but less so than inspecting, repairing, and securing over 1000 miles of tracks.

Long term just as in real life the railroads will win when you consider the difficulty in offloading and moving materials away from the river. That will eventually eat up your efficiency gains once you have to deliver materials to multiple inland locations.

[kalos72]

So your thinking since Natches to Cairo and Cairo to St Louis have no locks, use that river section to start and then work rail in the areas that have damaged locks?

Make sense...

My guys aren't sure what to make of the whole "The Mississippi has changed paths and now comes out at Morgan City." Seems a little strange to me...

[kato13]

Your plan sounds good.

If you have good offloading facilities handling the larger portion of the trip by water would be desirable. You use trucks short term to move materials inland and the volumes moved would determine which rail lines need to be prioritized.

[Raellus]

Don't forget the Mississippi's multiple navigable tributaries. It's hard to overstate the importance of rivers (and later, canals) to America's pre-industrial economy. I imagine that rivers would regain some of their historical economic importance after the TDM. You don't even need fossil fuels to move goods downstream.

[Targan]

River pilots with intimate knowledge of the rivers where they operate will once again be highly sought after and respected. With the lack of regular dredging and removal of obstacles, such specialized rivermen will become invaluable to safe and efficient navigation of the rivers.