population densities the use of the magnetic levitated (“maglev”) trains may
become a typical feature (Najafi and Nassar 1996), but some of the problems
associated with barrier effects and mortality are still likely to occur. Although
maglev trains share several of the characteristics with the present railways, other
technologies such as the admittedly farfetched “hyperloop” may differ considerably
(Matthews and Brueggemann 2015). In a hyperloop, passengers and freight travel
in vehicles enclosed in elevated “tubular” structures. In this case, barrier effects will
be greatly reduced, and mortality due to collisions with the trains will disappear,
though the possibility of flying animals colliding with the tubular structure will still
exist. Another technological advancement that is likely to develop in forthcoming
years is electric cars with auto-pilot features. As we write, this technology is being
promoted by large companies (e.g., Google) and at least one company already
commercializes cars with hardware and software enabling the auto-pilot mode
(Tesla Motors), a development that services such as Uber may use automated in the
future. These vehicles, or future improved versions, may enable comfortable travels
with the flexibility of door to door connections, challenging some of the advantages
that trains presently exhibit for some distances. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that
railway transportation as we know it today will become obsolete at any time in the
near future, requiring a continued engagement of railway ecologists to deal with the
current and future challenges associated with this transportation system.
Despite its positive prospects at the global scale, however, it is likely that some
railway lines will get out of operation due to technological developments and
changes in socioeconomic requirements, as it has happened during the past decades.
For instance, railways in the USA after World War II were quickly put aside in
favor of other means of transportation of passengers, such as automobiles and
airplanes, and by 1990 the 270,000 miles of active rail lines had diminished to
141,000 miles (Ferster 2006), though railways have retained 43% of the freight
market (Profillidis 2014). Comparable processes have occurred in other countries
such as Portugal, where many lines built during the early twentieth century lost
their importance and were progressively abandoned during the second half of the
twentieth and early twentyfirst centuries (Sarmento 2002). These changes represent
opportunities for conservation and call for the active participation of railway
ecologists in collaboration with other specialists, as abandoned railway lines may
lead to ecologically-oriented projects as well as to the mitigation of situations of
social injustice. The combination of ecological and social minded policies can
contribute to a new global pattern of urban transformation, as exemplified by the
High Line in New York City or the Sentier Nature in Paris (Foster 2010). The old
High Line railroad was disused in 1980 and it then started to develop as a
semi-natural habitat that was converted into a public park comprising twenty-two
blocks along the lower west side of Manhattan (Foster 2010). Paris’ Sentier Nature
represents another approach, where an old railway was converted into a nature trail,
now enriched with a diversity of types of ecosystems, with 200 species of flora and
70 species of fauna (Foster 2010). Although this field of ecological restoration after
railway abandonment was not dealt with in this book, this is an important area
19 What’s Next? Railway Ecology in the 21st Century
313
become a typical feature (Najafi and Nassar 1996), but some of the problems
associated with barrier effects and mortality are still likely to occur. Although
maglev trains share several of the characteristics with the present railways, other
technologies such as the admittedly farfetched “hyperloop” may differ considerably
(Matthews and Brueggemann 2015). In a hyperloop, passengers and freight travel
in vehicles enclosed in elevated “tubular” structures. In this case, barrier effects will
be greatly reduced, and mortality due to collisions with the trains will disappear,
though the possibility of flying animals colliding with the tubular structure will still
exist. Another technological advancement that is likely to develop in forthcoming
years is electric cars with auto-pilot features. As we write, this technology is being
promoted by large companies (e.g., Google) and at least one company already
commercializes cars with hardware and software enabling the auto-pilot mode
(Tesla Motors), a development that services such as Uber may use automated in the
future. These vehicles, or future improved versions, may enable comfortable travels
with the flexibility of door to door connections, challenging some of the advantages
that trains presently exhibit for some distances. Nevertheless, it is unlikely that
railway transportation as we know it today will become obsolete at any time in the
near future, requiring a continued engagement of railway ecologists to deal with the
current and future challenges associated with this transportation system.
Despite its positive prospects at the global scale, however, it is likely that some
railway lines will get out of operation due to technological developments and
changes in socioeconomic requirements, as it has happened during the past decades.
For instance, railways in the USA after World War II were quickly put aside in
favor of other means of transportation of passengers, such as automobiles and
airplanes, and by 1990 the 270,000 miles of active rail lines had diminished to
141,000 miles (Ferster 2006), though railways have retained 43% of the freight
market (Profillidis 2014). Comparable processes have occurred in other countries
such as Portugal, where many lines built during the early twentieth century lost
their importance and were progressively abandoned during the second half of the
twentieth and early twentyfirst centuries (Sarmento 2002). These changes represent
opportunities for conservation and call for the active participation of railway
ecologists in collaboration with other specialists, as abandoned railway lines may
lead to ecologically-oriented projects as well as to the mitigation of situations of
social injustice. The combination of ecological and social minded policies can
contribute to a new global pattern of urban transformation, as exemplified by the
High Line in New York City or the Sentier Nature in Paris (Foster 2010). The old
High Line railroad was disused in 1980 and it then started to develop as a
semi-natural habitat that was converted into a public park comprising twenty-two
blocks along the lower west side of Manhattan (Foster 2010). Paris’ Sentier Nature
represents another approach, where an old railway was converted into a nature trail,
now enriched with a diversity of types of ecosystems, with 200 species of flora and
70 species of fauna (Foster 2010). Although this field of ecological restoration after
railway abandonment was not dealt with in this book, this is an important area
19 What’s Next? Railway Ecology in the 21st Century
313