Time

I'd like to take a look at the relationship between railroads and time as articulated in Cronon's article, and maybe take another look at what Hill has to say on the matter. Cronon pointed out how the rise of the railroads led to the standardization of times across the country, severed the ancient relationship between time and the sun, and drastically changed notions of how much work could be done or distance could be traveled over a week, a day, or an hour. Also, farmers who once might have packed up their goods for the market once it felt right now had to conform to the railroads' timetables. But once American interest in transit shifted from rails back to roads, farmer Bob could go back to hauling his corn when he felt like it. And by "farmer Bob" and "corn" I of course mean "suburbanite mother Jane" and "kids". The conformity of schedules is the problem that Hill seems to have with trains, and it is of course a legitimate concern. But Hill doesn't seem to complain about flying, whose scheduling and security demands often require passengers to show up at the airport hours early. And what about commuters? Looking at a crowded highway during rush hour is perhaps the strongest argument for rail development. It's true; riding a train means submitting to its schedule, but the reality is that we aren't all pioneers living on the frontier anymore, and we already make concessions.