High speed rail is definitely not a requirement. Ordinary trains are still faster than driving.

What the USA lacks is a robust network. The spread of rail is too thin to be useful for everyday use.

Trains in the western US are not faster than driving because there is heavy freight rail traffic. Passenger trains (if they existed) would get stuck behind slow freight trains.

	▲	quitit 4 days ago \| parent [-]
		That’s why more rail needs to be built. I.e a robust network - I find I’m repeating myself. Side lanes are also a feature of these networks, and exist not just to overtake freight or behind schedule trains, but also enable different levels of service, such as express trains versus “all stops” style services. The optics of this thread are telling.