#HighSpeed

High-Speed Rail CEO: People Will Ask How They Lived Without It

High-speed rail will reduce travel times between major California cities. That is the belief of the bullet-train authority’s CEO Brian P. Kelly, who spoke in Fresno on Friday (Sept. 7). He said when the rail is built, for example, it will cut the time from San Francisco to Los Angeles compared to a car by half. First, HSR needs to build its initial segment, from Bakersfield to Merced through Fresno. Kelly anticipates that to be completed by 2026. There is no estimate for the

High-speed rail officials update public on Burbank-to-L.A. section of project

The proposed Burbank to Los Angeles section of the state high-speed rail project is still projected to be built alongside the existing tracks used by Metro, Metrolink, Amtrak and freight operators. (Courtesy of the California High Speed Rail Authority) Officials with the California High-Speed Rail Authority met with Burbank and Glendale residents this week to update them on the progress of the project’s Burbank-to-Los Angeles section. During meetings at the Buena Vista Branch

Ellis County residents express new concerns as high-speed rail project moves forward

Residents expressed growing concerns — some new and some old — surrounding the proposed high-speed rail project that plans to carve a path through eastern Ellis County. The Federal Railway Administration has now filed a draft of the environmental report on the train system’s impact in the latest milestone for the project. The reports claim the Dallas-to-Houston route would be built to avoid negatively affecting streams, wetlands, floodplains, and other natural and cultural fe

Elon Musk Tapped to Build High-Speed Tunnels in Chicago

Autonomous 16-passenger vehicles would zip back and forth at speeds exceeding 100 mph in tunnels between the Loop and O'Hare International Airport under a high-speed transit proposal being negotiated between Mayor Rahm Emanuel's City Hall and billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk's The Boring Co., city and company officials have confirmed. Emanuel's administration has selected Musk's company from four competing bids to provide high-speed transportation between downtown and

Hyperloop or high-speed rail? Developer counts the benefits

One of the studies that the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission announced this week will look at the environmental impact of a proposed hyperloop route through Columbus. "We're very confident that what the (environmental) study will wind up showing is the environmental impacts of hyperloop will be much less than other modes of transportation, like rail," said Hyperloop One's Dan Katz, head of North American projects. Of course, it's his job to say that, but here are his rea

Rick Scott announces potential high-speed rail linking Tampa and Orlando

State officials will consider private bids to build a high-speed rail link between Tampa and Orlando, reviving a dormant project to link the two cities, Gov. Rick Scott announced Friday. Brightline, the high-speed railroad linking Miami and West Palm Beach with hopes of reaching Orlando, said it has put it in a bid to build track along Interstate 4, leasing land owned by the state and the Central Florida Expressway Authority. "As one of the nation's fastest growing regions, T

Testing Begins on Driverless High-Speed Rail in Advance of 2022 Beijing Olympics

Although we're still years away from the 2022 Winter Games, China has already begun testing a driverless high-speed rail system that will be put in place around the Beijing region in time for the Olympics. China Railroad corporation conducted the automated test using a high-speed train leaving Shenyang, Liaoning bound for Heishan, Hebei on the Beijing-Shenyang railway line last Thursday. Similar to trials currently being conducted on self-driving cars, a human driver is requi

Top 10 reasons to bring high-speed rail to America

According to the US High Speed Rail Association (USHSR), congestion relief, safety, economic development and an alternative to flying are just some of the top 10 reasons to bring high-speed rail to America… The US High Speed Rail Association (USHSR) states that America is in big trouble on multiple fronts, yet the majority of its ‘leaders’ are asleep at the wheel with no real solutions being worked on, evaluated, or proposed. In response, the USHSR has compiled a list of the

Amtrak-TX ticket deal #1 with a “Bullet”

Amtrak and a Texas high-speed passenger rail project will link ticketing and other services in the Lone Star state. An agreement between Texas Central and Amtrak will allow the former’s passengers to use Amtrak’s reservation system to buy tickets for through travel on both the planned $12.5-billion Texas Bullet Train and Amtrak’s national routes. The North-Texas to Houston bullet train plans to offer transfers between Amtrak stations in Dallas and Houston. The agreement also

Amtrak jumps on board Texas' bullet train with ticketing and shuttle partnership

A conceptual digital rendering showing the North Texas passenger station for the Texas bullet train, proposed to be in the Cedars neighborhood of Dallas, just south of downtown, near the Interstate 30 and Interstate 35 interchange. (Photo illustration by Texas Central Partners) Amtrak and Texas Central announced a partnership Friday to link the proposed bullet train from Dallas to Houston to the national passenger rail network. Passengers will be able to book their bullet tra