High-speed rail grants draw 278 pre-applications from 40 states

The July 10 deadline for states, regions, and agencies to pre-apply for High-Speed and Inter-City Passenger Rail funds has passed, and I really can't express how gratifying it is to see that the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has received 278 pre-applications covering 40 states and the District of Columbia.

Folks, the response has been just tremendous. And it shows that not only does this country want high-speed rail, but also that this country is ready for high-speed rail. And it demonstrates a pent-up demand in America for the kind of fast, reliable, and sustainable transportation option people in Europe and Asia already experience every day.

I think the people of the states and regions that pre-applied understand that it’s time to look beyond our highways and invest in public transportation services--like passenger rail--that will enhance  mobility and reduce our carbon footprint.

But, I also think the overwhelming response shows that the planners who pre-applied for these grants are way ahead of where everyone thought they'd be in terms of their ability to conceive of and plan these rail lines. And that's good news.

Now, it's true that the pre-applications seek $102 billion in funding, far more than the $8 billion the Recovery Act makes available. But that just means more intense competition among applicants to demonstrate their projects deserve federal support. And, in the weeks leading up to the August 24 final deadline, pre-applicants will be working closely with our experts in the FRA refining and improving their applications to ensure their competitiveness.

It also means careful deliberation on our part to select the applications that will deliver the greatest value. That's a responsibility we welcome.

Comments

[DMcNab]

Just because you have 278 applications from 40 states, doesn't mean that you have people who will actually USE the high speed rail....like everything else will the benefit out way the cost?

Europe is a little more compact than we are in the US....what would be the ticket cost and time versus a flight say from DC to LA???

[Las Vegas Area Real Estate]

We would love to see a high speed rail line in Vegas! Hopefully it will happen soon.

[KSislak]

People, high-speed rail is not designed for the LA to DC trip. It is designed for the Chicago - Cleveland; Cleveland - Cincinnati trips. In the megaregions of the country, we have the density to support high-speed rail. Ohio is more densely populated than France.

[Aaron]

That DC to LA comparison is a straw man argument. Transcontinental trips will always be better served by air travel (even in Europe), and no one is suggesting we build a high-speed rail from DC to LA anyway.

The trips that are better served by rail include DC to Boston; LA to San Francisco; Chicago to St. Louis.

As others point out elsewhere, the cost of not building high-speed rail is NOT 'nothing.'

In California alone, if we don't expand rail capacity to relieve overcrowded airport terminals, we will have to expand highways and terminals and runways at a cost of over DOUBLE what high-speed rail costs, not to mention environmental costs.

[Richard Campbell]

With this level of interest, it is obvious that it is time to move on a new transportation bill with more funding for high speed rail. Delaying the new bill by two years will just leave the country two more years behind the rest of the world in high speed rail.

[Michael E. Bailey]

California voters approved a ballot measure in the November 2008 general election that will provide for the issuing of bonds to help with furthfer planning, infrastructure and buying of right of way for a high speed train network that the High Speed Rail Authorihty would like to run from Los Angeles to San Fransisco through Sacramento with a branch down to Anaheim and San Diego. The new Anaheim train station will shortly begin construction and it will be designed to accomodate the high speed train. There is also at least talk of another high speed line from Anaheim to either Los Vegas or Reno. Hopefully high speed rail of the kind now in use in Japan and France will be a reality here in the next 10 years. Thank you, Michael E. Bailey.

[Joe Hamelin]

HSR isn't for DC to LA. It's for SEA to PDX and SFO to LA.

[Ray]

Hey DMcNab - read a little bit on the subject. There are designated high speed rail corridors. And your right, there isn't one between DC and LA.

[railwayist]

Greetings to all and a comment in response to DMcNab.
When referring to Europe being more compact than North America, the US,Canada & Mexico, it would be more appropriate to compare the North-East USA to Western Europe.
Europe is the Western part of Eurasia---which, by the way is close to 11 time zones from London to Beijing---about (3) times the East/West expanse of North America-and -Eurasia- is criss-crossed with railways to just about every city and country by rail.
To make a point:
The 50 States of the USA need to be re-connected 'AGAIN'-by rail, as they once were before the 1960's, with 80% of the world's railway trackage in close to a 300,000 mile network that was the envy of the world!.

[Scott Mercer]

To D McNab:

High speed rail is not built for longer haul trips like DC to Los Angeles. Though a 200 mph train (quite possible) would take less than one day for such a trip (15 hours or so...no bunk cars required in the trainset).

No, it is more suited to shorter distances, like DC to New York, Chicago to St. Louis, or LA to San Francisco. Those trips would all take about three hours.

By the time you drive to that airport on the outskirts of the city, check your baggage, and go through all the security checks, you're talking almost the same time door-to-door as a high speed train (city center to city center).

Yes, Europe is more compact than the US. Just by a little. But like in Europe, we would using HSR trains for trips of less than 1000 miles most of the time. That's a huge chunk of total airline business in North America.