Wired Advocating for HIGH SPEED RAIL in the US is a brutal business, continually raising and dashing one’s hopes. Six years ago, President Obama dedicated some $8 billion in stimulus funds to high speed rail projects. Then the governors of Florida, Ohio, and Wisconsin spurned the cash. California took the money, only to see its plan to connect San Francisco and Los Angeles hamstrung by bureaucracy, crippling land use issues, and the Golden State’s vicious brand of NIMBYism. Read the whole article https://www.wired.com/2016/11/feds-finally-make-safety-rules-high-speed-rail/

Eric Edllin - The Germand Marshall Fund of the US This report argues that in order for high-speed rail (HSR) to deliver on its promise to 38 million Californians and investors, the project must be designed as the backbone of a comprehensive system for sustainable passenger mobility in California. If HSR is to serve as the backbone of sustainable intercity mobility in the state, the project's definition must extend beyond HSR route planning to include sustainable local transportation connections and careful station area planning. Cities across France and Germany demonstrate how HSR can be a powerful tool for strengthening cities and towns along HSR corridors in economic, social, and cultural terms. With careful planning, the same can be achieved in California. This is why the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CAHSRA) is funding planning efforts in most of the cities that will have HSR stations, to ensure that each station area is designed to maximize HSR-supportive devel...

The University of Illinois has released a final report on a preliminary feasibility study of a 220-mph high-speed rail (HSR) service between Chicago, Champaign-Urbana, Ill., and St. Louis and/or Indianapolis. The study concluded that a 220-mph HSR service from O'Hare International Airport, through downtown Chicago to Champaign-Urbana and on to St. Louis or Indianapolis is feasible and likely would be able to cover its operating costs without subsidies, according to a report released by the university. The report recommends that public-private partnerships, which have successfully been used to finance HSR projects overseas, should be explored. "An incremental or blended approach completed over a longer time period would reduce initial capital costs and provide other nearer-term transportation benefits, while simultaneously improving intercity transportation and quality times," the report states. To read the report's executive summary CLICK HERE

THE Federal Railroad Administration's (FRA) Railroad Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) has voted unanimously in favour of implementing new crashworthiness standards for high-speed trains that will operate in the United States. The standards, which the FRA expects to publish later this year, will provide baseline safety requirements for high-speed trains operating at up to 350km/h on dedicated lines, and up to 200km/h on conventional infrastructure. Once finalised, the new standards will be applied on the Washington DC – New York – Boston Northeast Corridor and in California. http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/north-america/us-approves-new-crashworthiness-standards-for-hs-trains.html?channel=535

U.S. PIRG, the federation of state Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs), stands up to powerful special interests on behalf of the American public, working to win concrete results for our health and our well-being. They have started a pro high speed rail campaign titled, Mad Fast Trains. The video, which is fantastic, has been loaded on our website http://highspeedrail.ca or you can view it on their website and order a bumper sticker http://www.madfasttrains.com

Vice President Biden's announcement of a plan for USA high speed rail investment. Read the announcement WATCH VIDEO

A US based pro High Speed Rail Group America 2050 Released a Report titled, "High Speed Rail in America" Promoting mega high speed rail regions in the USA. The report's one flaw is that it does not include Montreal and Toronto in its corridors. Enjoy reading it.