California High Speed Rail

The proposed California High Speed rail would completely revolutionize travel in my lovely Sunshine State. As someone who spends 7 hours and probably almost $200 in gas driving (and thats just one way) from Southern California to Northern California, this issue is close to my heart. Taking a train is much easier than flying, especially for luggage reasons, and is much easier for small children or people who don't like flying. Essentially this train could completely change the way we travel around the state.

Here is what the website, CA High-Speed Rail, says about the proposal,

The proposed system stretches from San Francisco, Oakland and Sacramento in the north -- with service to the Central Valley -- to Los Angeles and San Diego in the south. With bullet trains operating at speeds up to 220 mph, the express travel time from downtown San Francisco to Los Angeles is just under 2 ½ hours. Intercity travelers (trips between metropolitan regions) along with longer-distance commuters would enjoy the benefits of a system designed to connect with existing rail, air and highway systems.

According to another website, Students for California High Speed Rail, these are some of the other benefits to the project:

* it could create 450,000 jobs across the state
* prevent 10,000 auto accidents every year
* reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions equivalent to taking 1.4 million cars off the road
* generate enough revenue to pay for its cost in the long run
* reduce CO2 emissions by up to 17.6 billion pounds/year
* reduce California’s oil consumption by up to 22 million barrels/year
* cost half that of expanding freeways and airports to meet future needs

This high-speed rail would be like the TGV, Eurostar, or the SNCF that I've used in Europe. These types of trains are used in many countries in Europe, Japan, as well as Australia. If you want more information on it, check out this website, CA High-Speed Rail Authority. Somehow the US has slipped behind with our transportation.

This video provides a bit more information on the proposal, although it is very commercial-like.


The proposal is still in the forming stages, and there are opportunities to go to meetings and voice your suggestions or comments.
There is a meeting in San Jose on August 24, 2007 (4:00 pm – 6:00 pm) — San Jose City Hall, City Council Chambers, 200 East Santa Clara Street. Or for the Orange County crowd, there's a meeting in Anaheim on April 11, 2007, from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM and from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM in Gordon Hoyt Conference Room, City Hall West, 201 S. Anaheim Boulevard, Anaheim, CA.

One way to help this project to continue is to Vote YES on the Bond Measure for CAHSR in November 2008. And of course, please Register to Vote if you aren't already!