Tracks cleared for US high-speed rail plan
The White House yesterday announced a six-year plan to deploy high-speed rail in key regions across the US, committing $53bn (£33bn) of investment to the ambitious modernisation programme.
The announcement, which commits $8bn of funding over the next year, represents the first phase in president Obama’s plan of rolling out 1,900 miles of new rail networks that will ensure 80 per cent of Americans have access to high-speed rail within the next 25 years.
The initial six-year programme will begin with three classes of high-speed rail system. Core express lines will provide rail speeds of 125mph to 250mph, connecting up parts of the nation. Regional intercity lines will take trains with speeds of 90mph to125mph, which the administration says will lay the foundation for future high-speed service. Finally, slower, emerging lines will serve trains with speeds of up to 90mph, connecting them to the faster intercity and national lines.
However, examining the figures more closely reveals that only half of the $8bn that will be spent over the next year is going into rapid rail development. A further $4bn is going into a separate account, designed for the upkeep of the existing rail network.
The president made the 25-year commitment to the rail system during his State of the Union address on 27 January. The ultimate cost of the 25-year rollout is expected to be $500bn, according to US transportation secretary Ray LaHood.
A report by the US Federal Railroad Administration released in September states that the US leads China, Russia, India and Europe in terms of freight tonnage shipped by railroad.
However, it performed poorest by far in terms of the number of passenger miles travelled by rail, with the US ranked last among Japan, Europe, China and India.
High-speed rail networks are widely regarded as a cleaner alternative to short-haul flights and have proved highly successful at diverting people away from planes in countries such as France and Spain.
The announcement, which commits $8bn of funding over the next year, represents the first phase in president Obama’s plan of rolling out 1,900 miles of new rail networks that will ensure 80 per cent of Americans have access to high-speed rail within the next 25 years.
The initial six-year programme will begin with three classes of high-speed rail system. Core express lines will provide rail speeds of 125mph to 250mph, connecting up parts of the nation. Regional intercity lines will take trains with speeds of 90mph to125mph, which the administration says will lay the foundation for future high-speed service. Finally, slower, emerging lines will serve trains with speeds of up to 90mph, connecting them to the faster intercity and national lines.
However, examining the figures more closely reveals that only half of the $8bn that will be spent over the next year is going into rapid rail development. A further $4bn is going into a separate account, designed for the upkeep of the existing rail network.
The president made the 25-year commitment to the rail system during his State of the Union address on 27 January. The ultimate cost of the 25-year rollout is expected to be $500bn, according to US transportation secretary Ray LaHood.
A report by the US Federal Railroad Administration released in September states that the US leads China, Russia, India and Europe in terms of freight tonnage shipped by railroad.
However, it performed poorest by far in terms of the number of passenger miles travelled by rail, with the US ranked last among Japan, Europe, China and India.
High-speed rail networks are widely regarded as a cleaner alternative to short-haul flights and have proved highly successful at diverting people away from planes in countries such as France and Spain.
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