Historically horse-drawn railways were a thing. Perhaps we could revive that as a sort of compromise, build the track but save money on not buying any trains.
Wagonways (also spelt Waggonways), also known as horse-drawn railways and horse-drawn railroad consisted of the horses, equipment and tracks used for hauling wagons, which preceded steam-powered railways. The terms plateway, tramway, dramway, were used. The advantage of wagonways was that far bigger loads could be transported with the same power.
Historically horse-drawn railways were a thing. Perhaps we could revive that as a sort of compromise, build the track but save money on not buying any trains.
TIL
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wagonway