Map Of Potential High-Speed Rail Built By The Stimulus

After much clamoring by energy hawks, who knows what it was that finally brought high-speed rail to the stimulus -- perhaps a little nudge from ol' Amtrak Joe? -- but it got in, to the tune of $8 billion.

And now the question is, where will the expansion be? Matthew Yglesias reports on possible new high speed rail expansion:

In a last-minute change, the total quantity of funds available was increased. But there's no special plan for Las Vegas. The money will be spread all across the country. As it happens, I think an LA-Vegas HSR line is a perfectly reasonable project. But in practice the areas that will get a leg up should be the Federal Railroad Administration's officially designated high-speed rail corridors. As it happens, LA-Vegas doesn't make the cut. But guess who does have such a corridor? Ohio!

RELATED:
::Obama Plots Huge High-Speed Rail Expansion In Stimulus Bill

Comments

[AtHomeBoy2000]

10:30 AM on 02/23/2009

If you click through all the links, this article is slightly inadequate and my not properly reflect Obama's wishes. The map was created in 2004 by the Bush administration.

[Celldumceen]

03:06 AM on 02/22/2009

What is the word I am looking for to describe this map? Oh! Yes! Inadequate! We need a high speed grid that c overs the whole nation. Not corridors! Eugene, Oregon gets a station but major cities like Denver, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City don't? Why doesn't the western portion of this proposal doesn't span the length of the west cost? Why no connection between Dallas and Houston? Orlando and Jacksonville? I am hopping this is the roughest of a rough draft, cause this just looks like another example of the half ass way we go about doing things in this country! We need a true national high speed rail system that connects all the major cities, putting stations in every small town would defeat the whole purpose of having HSR!

[Totto]

02:39 PM on 02/22/2009

Actually, this is a good start. The line from Paris to Marseille was the only line for quite awhile in the eighties. Now, of course, much of Europe is criss-crossed with 200+mph trains. Thalys, Eurostar, TGV, etc. are electric, silent (inside), and smooth. People are easily able to reliably travel between major cities without the worry about bad weather and the possibility of sleeping on airport floors. One problem for the western US is the infrastructure costs of moving a relatively few people great distances.

[piscatore]

01:43 AM on 02/22/2009

Wow. Absolutely nothing through Tennessee. Why?

[zerotimes10]

03:12 AM on 02/22/2009

What are you freakin' kiddin' me? No lines from LA to Vegas?

Come on Obama. Where's the L.O.V.E?

Vegas is Los Angeles' playground. Give us some connection baby!

Love ya!

[Mugzi]

06:41 AM on 02/22/2009

I remember in one stimulus the GOP thought the rail from LA to LV was "pork"! I don't call jobs to build, maintain and operate the transit pork, but then I'm not a repub!

[Greggo]

07:05 AM on 02/22/2009

One would think that a line running from Atlanta to Chattanooga to Nashville to Indy to Chicago would be a popular line. Of course, practicality and politics rarely mix.

[KSMullins]

10:38 PM on 02/21/2009

Hey somebody get Richard Branson to start up Virgin Rail --- first a high speed train "Virgin Rail" from LA to Vegas...with gambling cars that start their action at the NV line. Once that line is profitable start getting the rest built.

Imagine living in St. Louis and working in Chicago or waking up on a Saturday and deciding to shop on Rush Street and be back home to St. Louis, Indianapolis, or Milwaukee before dinner.

Or better yet...let Die Bahn come over here and teach us how to really utilize trains.

[zerotimes10]

03:14 AM on 02/22/2009

KSMullins! Slap me 5 homey!

Thas what i'm talkin''bout!

[Totto]

03:00 PM on 02/22/2009

Virgin operates trains in the west of England. Nice ones built in France, if I remember correctly.

[femmyror]

08:35 PM on 02/21/2009

I'm loving this. With flying being such a nightmare post-9/11 (all those security checks), it makes so much sense to build high-speed railroad system here!

[zerotimes10]

03:19 AM on 02/22/2009

Build it Barack and they will come runnin!

[HoraceOvidson]

06:58 PM on 02/21/2009

Hold it. Is this cleared with Exon Mobil?

[zerotimes10]

03:16 AM on 02/22/2009

Fu*K EXXON Mobile

[Totto]

06:26 PM on 02/21/2009

After years of riding smooth, quiet high-speed rail all over Europe, the idea that we might join the rest of the industrialized world is incredibly exciting. Funny how conservatives love to fly to Europe and use their rail systems but don't want to spend a penny in their own country.

[romanman8]

10:57 PM on 02/21/2009

The U.S. will most likely not be able to re-join the "rest of the industrialized world" at this point; the machinery which has built and manufactured the industrialized western world seems obsolete and it is questionable whether it will be able to either compete or participate at this point. One can always hope, however!

[steveinohio]

04:19 PM on 02/21/2009

Fantastic news to see that the long discussed "Ohio Hub" project may finally get some help getting going. The 3-C line is a glaring omission from the current rail infrastructure, and I will be thrilled when I can finally take a train from Columbus back home to the Cleveland area.

[XCITIZEN]

04:00 PM on 02/21/2009

HELLO! WOULD SOMEBODY PLEASE CONNECT CALIFORNIA TO OREGON?

[Countcyber]

02:48 PM on 02/21/2009

FYI, my Canadian brothers, the Chinese stimulus package is $586 billion, barely half the size of ours. We do occasionally do some things right and this stimulus plan is one of them. I have been arguing and writing elected officials for years to get moving on high speed rail. God Bless President Obama!

My only issue is the Savannah to Atlanta line goes through Macon. The second largest city in Georgia, and the home of the Masters is Augusta. That route needs to come through Augusta. Macon isn't large enough to be a destination of this level of high speed service. Also, I would like to see a transcontinental rail line, as they have in Canada; NYC to LA would be great, but DC to LA or San Francisco would work too.

All of you complaining about how far $8 billion will go need to remember two things. One, the completely NEW rail system they built between Phoenix - Tempe and Mesa was $1.4 billion. There is $8 billion in this plan and most of the rail lines already exist. They need upgrading for high speed rail, not de novo starts. Second, the Obama administration is committed to this long-term. The stimulus will jump start plans that have sat on the shelve for decades, but each year there will be more money to keep the concept flowing.

Finally, we are in the age of the Great American rail system--after all these years. GOD BLESS PRESIDENT OBAMA!

[Diogenes08]

05:09 PM on 02/21/2009

Is there a railroad that presently connects Savannah and Atlanta via Augusta? A main trunk, not a local or freight-only line? It seems that this map follows trunk lines, ones that are already largely free from highway crossings, steep grades, etc and have been well maintained. Upgrading a local line would probably be prohibitively expensive.

[MikeGuy]

01:00 PM on 02/21/2009

Many here are wondering why some "logical" routes are excluded. This plan reflects long-term plans that have been in the works for some time; i.e., where local interests have made investment in routes that make sense. Here in the Pacific Northwest, the Eugene, OR to Vancouver, BC route has been in the works for at least 20 years, just lacked funding. I'm pleased to see it moving forward.

[thedirtman]

11:24 AM on 02/21/2009

Many connections are needed to serve the entire country. I will need a LA-Phoenix-Tucson-El Paso-Austin connection to do me any good. This is one area that it might pay to invest some extra.

[jneuman771]

09:52 AM on 02/21/2009

We made a conscious decision in the country in the late 60's to turn our back on rail service.
If we in the U.S. had an opportunity to travel in Europe and see their rail service we would realize
what a disastrous decision that was. The rail service is incredible. We should be looking at
high speed corridors through out the U.S. and cross coutry rail service as well.
As usual we are late to the game, with little money, and little commitment.

[Diogenes08]

12:55 PM on 02/21/2009

The decision was made in the 50's, by General Motors and Standard Oil (Exxon). They bought out inter-city rail lines and subways all over the country and let them rot, in favor of GM busses run on Standard gas and diesel. Check out the abandoned subway system in Los Angeles as just one example.

[hipolitical]

02:19 AM on 02/21/2009

Why doesn't the map show the whole West Coast as a corridor? Lots of travel occurs between NW and CA...

http://www.junglethingy.com

[wendynyc]

01:19 AM on 02/21/2009

China is putting $800 billion in infrastructure projects.

We are putting in $40 billion.

Thank the Republicans for their narrow vision and holding our country back!

They need to be booted out completely!