M4rek wrote:i was really of thinking of something similar... investments in any area you wish, of any amount. the you can invest in more specific research projects, ie, aerodynamic designing , axel/ wheel technology... catch my drift?
This makes sence, having better aerodynamic technologies would get you faster trains, having better engine management (less power loss to heat, more to turning the wheels for example) gives trains more horsepower.
It would be nice if some of the technological improvements would also have an effect on the release dates of trains (better aerodynamics would give earlier HSTs), although this influence shouldn't be too big (1-3 years?).
And maybe the new technologies could only be applied to new build trains, so if you have a 5 year old train, it wouldn't get the newest technologies, you would have to replace it with a new one or take it out of operation for a few months to revise the parts that can be upgraded.
* Carries on dreaming *