It is about damn time we heard an update about the “High Speed Bullet Train” in the United States.
I can’t tell you how many times I have seen a layout like this one below on social media and wondered why our country hasn’t take care of the high speed rail system yet.
The high speed rail system has been “talking the talk” in recent years, but it has only recently “walked the walk” with just a handful of short (and not so fast) lines in the works, and the news of this new project that would take travelers from Los Angeles to Las Vegas (and vice versa) in just around an hour and a half.
If the rail system is federally funded (for a smooth $3.75 billion dollars), the project would be set to open in 2027.
Considering that the flight time from Los Angeles to Las Vegas is one hour and 15 minutes, and adding on getting through security, arriving to the airport early, and everything else to do with air travel, the bullet train could very well be faster than flying.
Of course, Los Angeles is massive and getting around it is rather slow, so it would really depend on where the hub is located.
I think everyone would be on board for this step in the national high speed rail system except for the airline industry. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole plan gets axed because the airlines come in and lobby against it (that pesky lobbying).
The company behind the idea is Brightline, and the person who came up with the idea is reportedly the part owner of the Milwaukee Bucks Wes Edens.
Brightline has already successfully built high speed railways in Florida (connects Miami to Orlando), so skeptics of this newly proposed rail system can look to that project for a glimpse at what is to come for Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
In regards to the Las Vegas-Los Angeles connector, Brightline CEO Mike Reininger told Robb Report that:
“After more than a decade of working to find a pathway, Brightline West will be the first true high-speed rail system in America and will serve as the blueprint for how we can connect major city pairs that are too short to fly and too far to drive.”
The high speed railway would not only offer an alternative for air travel, but it would also decrease highway traffic significantly if adopted in bigger cities.
If this whole thing can make traveling cheaper AND cut down on overwhelming city traffic, I’m not sure why we aren’t pulling the trigger on the national map layout.
I’m ready for all the other big cities across the country to get with the high speed railway program.
