by Zachary Shahan

Obama put a strong focus on this in his State of the Union speech — “From the first railroads to the interstate highway system, our nation has always been built to compete. There’s no reason Europe or China should have the fastest trains…. Tomorrow, I’ll visit Tampa, Florida, where workers will soon break ground on a new high-speed railroad funded by the Recovery Act. There are projects like that all across this country that will create jobs and help our nation move goods, services, and information.”

Now, the White House has just announced the 12 rail lines that will receive billions of dollars for HSR in the very near future. If these HSR projects come to fruition, the US may finally be level with Europe and China.

Will this be the start we need to transform our transportation system in the US?

Previously, I wrote about about North Carolina and Virginia’s chances for funding. They were asking for $5 billion out of the available $8 billion. Well, they were awarded funding, but not quite the $5 billion they were asking for. In order to provide funding for a wide variety of projects across the country, no one could get exactly the amount they wanted. NC and VA (together) are receiving $620 million for their projects. California, Florida and the Northeast are receiving the most funding.

The following gives a quick snapshot of the projects awarded the funding. For more information on any of the projects, follow the links to the White House press releases.

Northeast Region

The Northeast Region is receiving a total of $1.191 billion for thousands of miles of new, upgraded or planned tracks. The projects in this region span 11 states (Maine,Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland) and Washington, DC. The region includes 7 intercity passenger rail corridors.

As the White House’s press release states: “The Northeast region currently has the most integrated passenger rail network in the country. The vision for these rail corridors is to invest in projects that will boost speeds, cut trip times and strengthen the system as a real alternative to air and car travel.”

Florida

The Florida Department of Transportation was awarded $1.25 billion for HSR lines between Tampa, Orlando and Miami.

As someone who was born and raised in Sarasota, about one hour south of Tampa, this statement from the White House is no news to me: “the region is almost entirely reliant on automobiles for transportation between these metro areas, which together have a population of over 10 million people and account for two of the nation’s 20 largest metro areas.” This new HSR investment may be the start of a major transportation transformation in those areas. This is a dream a lot of Florida residents (and probably tourists) have had for years, but not knowing if it would ever come true.

This investment will also bring thousands of jobs to Florida, something sorely needed in one of the states hit hardest by the economic recession. “It is estimated that these investments in high-speed rail will create thousands of jobs throughout Florida, which has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation.”

Speeds on these rail lines will be up to 168 mph (Tampa-Orlando) and 186 mph (Orlando-Miami), making rail travel times significantly less than automobile travel times (60 minutes compared to 90 minutes and 2 hours compared to approximately 4 hours, respectively).

The Tampa to Orlando phase is scheduled for completion in 2014, and the Orlando to Miami phase for 2017.

Pontiac-Detroit-Chicago

This rail line connecting cities in Michigan (i.e. Pontiac, Detroit and Kalamazoo) with Chicago (Illinois) is receiving $244 million to upgrade 300 miles of track.

As the White House states, “The long-term vision for this corridor includes doubling the number of daily round trips between Detroit and Chicago and increasing speeds to 110mph.”

Some existing stations on this corridor will be renovated and some new stations will be built with the money as well.

Northwest

The Northwest is receiving $598 million for a high speed rail corridor from Eugene to Portland to Seattle to Vancouver. “

The long-term vision for the corridor is to have a dedicated high-speed track, where trains will operate at up to 150mph, with 13 daily round trips between Seattle and Portland.” This federal funding follows significant investment made by Oregon and Washington already.

California

California is receiving a total of $2.344 billion. =This is for approximately 1,955 miles of new (800 miles), upgraded (880 miles), or planned (275 miles) track!

As the White House reports, California has invested a lot in rail recently, and with 5.5 million people (per year) riding on its 3 intercity corridors now, its routes are only second to the Northeast in ridership. Its plans for the future are even bigger.

“The long-term vision for passenger rail in California is among the most ambitious in the nation.”

Train speeds are expected to reach as high 220 mph and should cut travel time between Los Angeles and San Francisco to under 2 hours and 40 minutes (compared to 6 hours by car).

With a more ambitious plan, the time frame for California is also longer. “Phase I calls for a 520-mile system connecting Anaheim and Los Angeles through the Central Valley to San Francisco by 2020; Phase II would extend the system north to Sacramento and south to San Diego by 2026.”

Ohio

Ohio is receiving $400 million for 250 miles of new track.

This brand new corridor, named the “3C Corridor,” will connect Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, and Cincinnati, Ohio.

This project will create thousands of jobs in Ohio, improve its livability greatly, and help to rehabilitate historic downtowns. There are numerous universities and major companies in close proximity to the corridor: “Nearly 40 colleges and universities lie in close proximity to the route, as do the headquarters of 22 Fortune 500 companies.”

Texas

Texas is receiving $4 million to “implement the final design and construction of signal timing improvements at grade crossings between Austin and Fort Worth. This will increase the operating speed of Amtrak’s Texas Eagle and improve on-time performance.”

Iowa

Iowa is receiving $17 million to “install four remotely controlled powered crossovers on the BNSF Ottumwa subdivision, which will reduce travel times and improve on-time performance.”

Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul) - Madison - Milwaukee - Chicago

Wisconsin and Minnesota are receiving $823 million for approximately 441 miles of track that connect their main cities with Chicago.

Although this a major region in the Midwest, there is currently no passenger rail service between Milwaukee and Madison.

“Using grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), intercity passenger rail service will be established between Milwaukee and Madison with stops in Brookeld, Oconomowoc, and Watertown at speeds of up to 110 mph. Service is expected by 2013.

Improvements between Chicago and Milwaukee will ultimately reduce travel time by more than 30 percent and increase maximum speeds from 79 mph to 110 mph. Eventually, passengers will be able to travel from Chicago to the Twin Cities at a top speed of 110 mph, saving time and energy compared to driving.”

Chicago - St. Louis - Kansas City

Illinois and Missouri were granted $1.133 billion to upgrade 570 miles of track connecting Kansas City and St. Louis to Chicago as well.

“The corridor connects Chicago, IL to St. Louis, MO and Kansas City, MO. Currently, five daily round trips operate between Chicago and St. Louis and two daily round trips operate between St. Louis and Kansas City. Ultimately, the long-term vision for the corridor is to reach speeds of 110mph from Chicago to St. Louis to Kansas City, with up to eight daily round trips between Chicago and St. Louis.”

North Carolina & Virginia

As mentioned at the beginning, North Carolina and Virginia are receiving $620 million, to upgrade 480 miles of track.

This “Southeast Corridor” connects Charlotte, Raleigh, Richmond, and Washington, D.C. With a strong history of supporting passenger rail, significant planning efforts for HSR, and being one of the fastest growing regions in the country, the federal government recognized that these states deserve investment in the transportation of the future.

HSR rail for the Southeast is getting its start here, but the long-term plans are much broader. “The long-term goal for this corridor is top speeds of up to 110mph, reducing trip time by one-third from Washington, D.C. to Richmond, and to four and one-half hours between Richmond and Charlotte. Eventually, the Southeast Corridor is expected to use Atlanta as a regional hub, with connections from Atlanta east to Charlotte, south to Macon and Jacksonville, north to Chattanooga, and west to Birmingham.”

Only the HSR lines in California will compare with China’s new HSR lines in speed. However, many of the other HSR lines are anticipated to be very similar to Europe’s best. At these speeds, rail will become much more competitive with air and automobile travel in the US.

This is a good start. But the funding needs to continue, especially through a long-overdue, new Transportation Bill.

Reprinted with permission from Cleantechnica