Indian railways and the immediate cost of development

India's naval ambitions competed with the cost of improving its infrastructure. A single-track railway carrying vital goods and passengers left traffic vulnerable if that route failed. Doubling the track and providing alternative lines would improve resilience, but both required substantial investment. Taxes or borrowing by the British or Indian government would have to meet the immediate cost. The case for such spending rested on future prosperity and higher living standards, even when the eventual returns could not be predicted precisely.