Primarily, the U.S. doesn’t have bullet trains due to money and politics. Most politicians aren’t interested in engaging in a crazy expensive construction project that won’t come to short-term fruition. Japan currently has bullet train projects in construction that won’t be completed until the mid-2030s and other projects in early development that won’t be completed until the mid-2040s. In addition to politics, the U.S. is both a driving and flying culture. Neither auto manufacturing companies nor airlines want the culture to gravitate towards a train culture.