SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – This week, an 11-1 vote on a bill in the California Senate Transportation Committee moved forward plans for the state’s high-speed rail project. However, there’s still work to be done before it becomes a reality.
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This bill “would commission a study on the extraordinary commercial and residential economic development opportunities,” along the rail corridor, according to the office of California State Sen. Dave Cortese (D). He said it would be focused on land value development incentives and public-private partnerships from Los Angeles to San Francisco.
A fact sheet provided by Cortese explained that the mission of the California High-Speed Rail Authority is to build a fully electrified high-speed rail system with trains that can operate up to 220 miles per hour. According to an article published earlier this month in The New York Times, the fastest train in the U.S. is the Amtrak Acela train, which reaches speeds of 150 miles per hour. Meanwhile, the fastest commuter trains in China can operate at around 200 miles per hour or more, per the High Speed Rail Alliance.
In California, Phase 1 of the high-speed rail project will connect San Francisco and Anaheim via the Central Valley, where work on the 119-mile segment has already started. According to the fact sheet, it is currently under construction from the area around Merced to Bakersfield.
“The project has already employed nearly 15,000 construction jobs,” KCBS Radio reported this week.
While Cortese said the rail project will bring a development boom similar to the one in the technology-field focused Silicon Valley, KCBS Radio reported that one state lawmaker (the lone “nay” vote on the bill) isn’t on board with the project. Republican state Sen. Tony Strickland said: “I think we need to stop digging.”
“The bill sets the foundation for leveraging commercial and residential development along the High Speed Rail corridor to create jobs, attract businesses and generate new revenue streams that will help fund a lot of things,” Senator Cortese told committee members regarding the project.
However, Strickland isn’t the only person who has dissed efforts to bring high speed rail to the U.S. In 2021, the libertarian think tank Cato Institute argued that it would be too expensive for the U.S. to invest in high-speed rail. The New York Times also said this month that “high-speed rail is unlikely to receive additional support from the federal government,” under Republican President Donald Trump.
Supporters of the project – including Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer, a Republican – have said it will revolutionize how Californians travel, strengthen the economy, improve cities, and support sustainability.
California’s project is not the only potential high-speed rail line on the horizon in the U.S. The Times’ report listed several others “from Washington to Texas,” currently underway. Experts cited by the outlet explained that traditional rail tracks in the U.S. cannot be repurposed for high speed rail, since the super-fast trains need specific conditions to operate. For example, the Acela’s tracks and route through dense population centers prohibit it from becoming a high-speed rail route, the report said.
“Decades of transportation funding centered on cars means America’s railways have fallen behind,” said the High Speed Rail Alliance. “But, the tide is starting to turn, with projects underway across the country”
Phase 2 of the California rail project would include portions connecting Sacramento to the line via the planned Merced station and connecting San Diego to the line via Los Angeles. Current plans outlined in the fact sheet include train cars with onboard Wi-Fi, spacious and accessible seating, open family-friendly areas, bike storage, café cars, and large scenic windows.
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