Tuesday, August 5, 2008

High Speed Dream

London's Eurostar station? Brussels' TGV, maybe?
No. This is California. Conceptually, that is. The possibility of a 800-mile high-speed rail route that would connect San Francisco, Sacramento and the Central Valley with Los Angeles and San Diego is often dismissed by locals as Utopia with a capital U. In a country famous for its reluctance to call on taxpayers to finance much needed public infrastructure they will be the first ones to benefit from, the $40 billion project seems like a well-intended dream. Maybe it isn't.

The California High Speed Authority is pushing hard for it despite criticism and dissent, and intends to finance the project through public-private partnerships. It has put a $9.95 billion bond measure on the November 2008 ballot, which, if it passes, would allow the first phase of this ambitious 220-mile/hour project to begin in 2010. How would you fancy rallying L.A. to Frisco in 2 ½ hours? Bliss, non?
[previous post: You've Got Rail]
conceptual view by NC3D for the California High Speed Rail Authority