The United States High Speed Rail Association (USHSR) has released a map outlining a proposal to build 17,000 miles of new high-speed rail across the United States, a plan the association claims would “significantly reduce carbon emissions.”
The USHSR’s proposed four-phase construction would enable full high-speed rail travel between Seattle, Washington; San Diego, California; Miami, Florida; and Boston, Massachusetts at speeds of up to 220 miles per hour.
Over the past few years, interest in high-speed rail has grown across the United States. After decades of little activity, many lines are now proposed or under construction. Integrated high-speed rail networks already exist in Western Europe, Japan, and much of the United States. ChinaAccording to Statista, in 2021 the network length reached 25,000 miles.
The first phase of the USHSR’s proposed new network would focus on seven regions, including routes connecting Dallas and San Antonio, Houston, Chicago and Minneapolis, Detroit, and New York and Washington, DC.
At this stage, Completion of California High Speed RailA route between San Francisco and Los Angeles is already under construction, and the company has also proposed a route between Las Vegas, Nevada and Los Angeles, which is similar to a route currently under construction. Connecting Las Vegas to Southern California.
American High Speed Rail Association
This phase also incorporates plans to build a new high-speed rail line. Connecting Houston and Dallas In Texas, where President Biden approved in principle but not yet fully approved the plan, plans for high-speed rail are also underway. Connecting Dallas and Fort WorthHowever, the details are unclear at this stage.
The second phase of the USHSR plan would extend the tracks built in the first phase, with the Northeast Corridor extending to Boston and Charlotte, North Carolina. The Texas Corridor would extend east and north through New Orleans and Nashville, connecting with the network built around Chicago in the first phase.
Many other lines built in the first phase will also be extended, and new lines will be built connecting Denver with Albuquerque, Kansas City, St. Louis, and Oklahoma City with Tulsa.
The third phase would see the construction of tracks linking the existing California and Northwestern network from Eugene, Oregon, to Sacramento, and a separate rail line would link Las Vegas to Dallas and Jackson, Mississippi. This phase also proposes a new line linking Salt Lake City, Utah, to Denver, and an extension of the Northeastern network to Detroit and Montreal in Canada.
Finally, the fourth phase of the USHSR proposal would include new lines connecting Salt Lake City to the existing network via Seattle and Sacramento, connecting Denver to Kansas City, Omaha and Minneapolis, and connecting Dallas to Memphis, St. Louis and Louisville.
talk Newsweek Commenting on the plan, USHSR CEO Andy Kunz said, “The Obama-Biden Administration has set a goal of providing access to high-speed rail to 80% of Americans within 25 years. Such nationwide access remains our goal.”
On its website, the USHSR says the new network will “revitalize our economy, revitalize manufacturing, create millions of jobs, end our dependence on oil, reduce congestion, create access to vast amounts of affordable housing, and dramatically reduce carbon emissions.”
He continued: “This electrically powered system will provide sustainable, affordable and safe transportation for everyone.”
USHSR was founded in 2009 as a nonprofit organization that campaigns to build a new high-speed rail network across the United States. It works with industry groups, manufacturers and engineering companies, and lobbys various levels of government to support the plan.
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