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An ad-hoc group of transportation experts, headed by former state director of transportation Will Kempton, slammed the California High Speed Rail Authority saying it needed “a thorough reassessment of a number of critical engineering, financial, economic and managerial issues.” Um, that doesn’t leave much for them to be in approval of, does it? Their [...] Serious questions are being asked about the viability and affordability of California High Speed Rail. The project was approved by voters in Nov. 2008, allocating almost $10 billion in bonds. When and if completed, it would link San Francisco and Los Angeles with trains capable of going 220 mph, making the trip in 2 ½ [...] This new design could challenge Asian dominance in HSR, and make rail travel exciting and fun. The vehicle is 1312 feet long and will travel at 225 mph. (The US is absent from HSR design and implementation. Sigh.) The US needs unquestionably needs high speed rail nationwide. Yet many states are in deep financial trouble and can’t fund it. Federal government outlays have been minor at best. Why is it the feds can shovel hundreds of billions to the banks in the form of bailouts and cheap credit yet can’t fund something [...] The Australian Greens have put high-speed rail (HSR) back on the national agenda. Greens leader Senator Bob Brown has called on the Rudd government to fund a study identifying the best route for connecting Australia’s two largest cities, Melbourne and Sydney, with HSR. This is great news, even if it makes me a bit [...] California High Speed Rail Blog has more. In 2008, California voters approved a $9.4 billion proposition to build a High Speed Rail network in California. The trains will reach speeds over 200 mph. Construction may start as soon as 2011 and will take years to complete. If NIMIBYs don’t block it, that is. Meanwhile China plans high speed rail to Europe [...] China wants to connect its high-speed rail to Europe. It would be largest infrastructure project in history Meanwhile, the US limps far behind on high speed rail (as well as on mass adoption of renewable energy, internet infrastructure and speed, and too many other criteria) [...] It would make the Phoenix-Tucson trip in a mere 30 minutes. Although the project is still in its early stages of development and the estimated cost is a whopping 28 billion dollars, the idea that someday in the future we could all be riding on solar powered bullet trains is simply too cool to [...] The Infrastructurist has highly useful and informative links about high speed rail in the US. Yes, HSR will be expensive. But when completed, it would revolutionize transportation. Imagine being able to go from, say, S.F. to L.A. in couple of hours, leaving and arriving at downtown locations, not at an airport. |  | ||||
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