The Biden administration announced Friday the largest federal investment in passenger trains in decades, with $8.2 billion in new funding for high-speed rail and other projects nationwide.
Why it matters: Rail travel is considered a relatively clean way to get lots of people from point A to B, especially compared with aviation — but the U.S. rail network is sorely lagging behind that of peer nations in Europe and Asia.
Driving the news: The big highlight is two multibillion-dollar packages for planned high-speed rail projects.
- One would connect Las Vegas, Nevada, and Rancho Cucamonga, California (just east of Los Angeles) using electrified trains.
- It’s expected to carry more than 11 million passengers annually, the White House said, with roughly two-hour trips — half the typical drive time.
- It’s being built by Brightline, a private train operator that’s been expanding across Florida and is now setting its eyes westward.
The other package would provide for high-speed rail travel between Bakersfield and Merced, California.
- The new all-electric trains “will produce zero emissions […]
Excellent News! Thank you.
I lived in Europe for seveal years.. mainly in Italy. While there, I often traveled by train, locally and over longer distances. I don’t know the exact numbers but it was obvious in several European countries that cars were used less than in the US. There were multiple reasons for that, the first being the cost of fuel which was much higher than in the US. Europe has refineries for processing oil, but there are no oil fields. I heard over and over that not driving was a relief. The cost of doing so was high not only for the fuel itself, but driving had health costs. Trains allowed time for ‘office work’. No parking fees, no fuel which was very expensive. Services far beyond what American trains offer were available. Office machines and spaces for office work were provided. No parking services No wear and tear on humans or cars.