That's one way to look at it. Roads are part of an overall system. You need to look at transit holistically -- how do trains, busses, etc impact the overall mix of trips.
With respect to the rights of way, an asset unused goes away. That is a big reason why car companies bought out streetcar lines to kill them. I live in an area (Albany, NY) which was a big transit driven place until the postwar era. The New York Central, Delaware & Hudson and various streetcar/trolley lines had all sorts of rights of way connecting various communities in a relatively small area.
That stuff is all gone, converted to roads, parks and subdivisions.
For an entity like Amtrak, the rights they have in major cities are worth billions, but in reality are priceless. Without operating service, that value would diminish to near zero very quickly.
With respect to the rights of way, an asset unused goes away. That is a big reason why car companies bought out streetcar lines to kill them. I live in an area (Albany, NY) which was a big transit driven place until the postwar era. The New York Central, Delaware & Hudson and various streetcar/trolley lines had all sorts of rights of way connecting various communities in a relatively small area.
That stuff is all gone, converted to roads, parks and subdivisions.
For an entity like Amtrak, the rights they have in major cities are worth billions, but in reality are priceless. Without operating service, that value would diminish to near zero very quickly.