U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, August 1, 2022. (Photo: Kevin Sanders for California Globe).
Brightline West Project Has Groundbreaking Ceremony In Las Vegas
‘With high speed rail, you need to make it the best option, and they are not doing that in California and Nevada’
By Evan Symon, April 23, 2024 2:45 am
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and other lawmakers officially broke ground on the Brightline West high-speed rail project between Las Vegas and Rancho Cucamonga, intending for the line to open in time for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Since the late 2010’s, the Florida-based Brightline has been planning a Las Vegas to Southern California high-speed route, with many issues, such as where the California end terminus should go, managing to be resolved. However, final hurdles, such as financing issues and construction delays, plagued the company in the last few years. In 2020, the state of California approved $600 million worth of bond allocations, paving the way for Brightline West, then paired with Virgin Trains USA, to build soon. However, according to Brightline, “election uncertainty, the lack of approval of a Covid-19 vaccine, and lack of liquidity in the market did not allow [Brightline West] to price the bonds to provide long-term stability for the company.”
As a result, state treasurer Fiona Ma took back the allocation bonds in November 2020 and Virgin dropped out of the project, stopping the project indefinitely. However, the company bounced back the next year, even planning groundbreaking ceremonies and getting final okays from the Californian Government.
The final plan, of having stations in Rancho Cucamonga, Hesperia, Victor Valley, and Las Vegas and a track that would largely be placed in the median of I-15. Future stations would include a linkup with Los Angeles proper, as well as routes to Phoenix, Salt Lake City and Denver.
In February 2023, union agreements were finalized, and a construction start date was soon announced for later in the year. However, two major hurdles still remained: Final regulatory approval of the route, which is expected to largely be built in the I-15 median, and final federal funding, with California and Nevada lawmakers petitioning the federal government for $3.75 billion of the estimated $12 billion needed to complete it in time for the planned 2027 opening.
In November 2023, the Surface Transit Board (STB) approved the modified new line, now stretching 186 miles from Rancho Cucamonga to Las Vegas. This led to the Department of Transportation awarding a grant of $3 billion to the Brightline West project the next month, with many being won over by economic benefits to both states, traffic relief along I-15, a cut in car emissions, and providing a cheaper option of travel between the two regions.
While the project has been unpopular for reasons that include cost, locations, and permanently defacing I-15, the project went ahead, albeit this time with a 2028 opening because of many delays. This led to the groundbreaking ceremony in Ls Vegas on Monday, officially beginning construction from Las Vegas into California.
We're investing in the future of America's passenger rail system—funding high-speed rail projects in the West and enhancing service for communities across the country. pic.twitter.com/L1FvUmyOqT
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) April 22, 2024
“Our high-speed rail future is underway,” said Buttigieg on X. “I look forward to celebrating today’s groundbreaking for Brightline West in Las Vegas. We’re supporting this pivotal project with billions of dollars from President Biden’s infrastructure law. I’m convinced that the first time Americans actually experience American high-speed rail on U.S. soil, there’s going to be no going back and people are going to expect and demand it all across the country.”
“People have been dreaming of high-speed rail in America for decades — and now, with billions of dollars of support made possible by President Biden’s historic infrastructure law, it’s finally happening.”
Our high-speed rail future is underway. I look forward to celebrating today's groundbreaking for Brightline West in Las Vegas. We're supporting this pivotal project with billions of dollars from President Biden's infrastructure law.
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg (@SecretaryPete) April 22, 2024
Transport Workers Union President John Samuelson added in a statement, “The Transport Workers Union is proud to be here for the unveiling of this critical infrastructure project that will transform the way people travel and provide thousands of good-paying jobs. Investments in big infrastructure projects like Brightline West provide more than just a way to get from one place to another, they provide jobs with a pathway to economic security for hardworking Americans.”
“This project presents a tremendous opportunity for trade unions, and the bipartisan infrastructure law was a major catalyst in getting a big idea like Brightline West from the drawing board to the groundbreaking phase.”
Despite the groundbreaking, skeptics continued to say that the Brightline West project could have more issues with it than they let on.
“Oh, let me count the ways,” said German passenger railroad consultant Horst Bauer to the Globe on Monday. “First, high speed lines need to connect two major cities to make sense. In the U.S., the New York and Florida high speed rail systems make sense since they connect high population areas. Brightline West connects Las Vegas with three smaller Californian cities. It should have been Los Angeles or nothing to even have a shot at it.”
“Second is timing. It takes 4 hours to drive from LA to Las Vegas. Brightline West can get you there in 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Seems great, until you realize the logistics. You need transportation from Los Angeles to Rancho Cucamonga or one of the other stops. That’s an hour driving. Then there is parking, check ins and a lot of other things that take time, not to mention delays. So it is basically a wash on time.”
“Third is secondary transport. Using a car can have you go anywhere in LA or Las Vegas, or even outside those areas then. For Brightline West, they’ll connect with public transit and Lyft and Uber, but you better make sure you want to stay in those cities or else you’ll be paying a lot of fees. Driving you just need to pay gas.”
‘With high speed rail, you need to make it the best option, and they are not doing that in California and Nevada. There are so many built-in problems they are not addressing that it is bordering on irresponsibility. Oh, and does anyone really believe the 2028 complete date?”
Updates on the Brightline West construction are due out soon.
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November 2, 2020
This is just another solar project disguised as a train. The project can’t stand on its own merits and needs government intervention to pay for it. If the gaming industry in La Vegas wants this project in order to facilitate its customers getting from metro Los Angeles, then they should pay for it. Having driven on this stretch of I-15 a couple of times I do not recall seeing a median big enough for such a project. I wonder if they have researched how blowing sand affects the end use. Most of this area is desert.
Randy Wang KABC 790 radio host reported yesterday what had been severely UNDER-reported about this and is another major damper on it. The round trip price for this is expected to be $400 per ticket. (!!!)
But maybe by the time they finish this stupid thing $400 will look cheap, what with continuing rampant inflation. And by the way what is behind the choice of the ugly colors of neon green, pink, orange, etc. that are always used for this stuff? It adds a cheap and cheesy vibe to it. Makes no sense.
More than likely the $3 billion dollars of taxpayer money will mostly disappear with graft and the train will never be built? Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and rest of the corrupt Biden regime need to be held accountable?
Such speculation is not exactly out of line in our current hellish climate, now is it, TJ? In fact it is more the rule than the exception, I think we can safely say. Come to think of it, when it comes to govt and its politicians; its unelected non-profits and bureaucracies, there might not even BE an exception. It’s just the RULE. Gah
Graftline West Project Has Groundbreaking Ceremony In Las Vegas.
There – fixed it!
No kidding, CW
Vegas cannot get it act straight with its little monorail off the Strip. This is going to be a “money pit” of epic proportions. I’m popping the popcorn!
Not defending the graft and corruption that goes along with a project like this, but this comment:
“Oh, let me count the ways,” said German passenger railroad consultant Horst Bauer to the Globe on Monday. “First, high speed lines need to connect two major cities to make sense. In the U.S., the New York and Florida high speed rail systems make sense since they connect high population areas. Brightline West connects Las Vegas with three smaller Californian cities. It should have been Los Angeles or nothing to even have a shot at it.”
There’s a reason why this connects to Rancho Cucamonga – has this guy ever looked at a map? Geography dictates where the train had to go. Rancho is the first city at the bottom of the Cajon Pass, so it was the logical place for it to terminate in the LA area. If you look at a map, there’s the inconvenient San Gabriel mountains in the way if you wish for another route, unless you want to tunnel through miles of mountains (impossible). So Rancho it is. Later, they will put in a connection on to ONT airport, then later to LA. That said, even though I live near the terminus, I wouldn’t consider using this train, I can drive to Vegas in three hours from here for far less money, and have my car with me when I arrive to go wherever I want to go without having to rent or use a taxi or Uber. It’s far less than $400 in gas for me to drive there and back (at 30mi/gal in my car and 225 mi from here, that’s 7.5gal. of gas X $5.00gal = $37.50 each way, or $75 R/T). $400 R/T ain’t happening for me!
Funny they propose placing this in the middle of I-15?
That helps with the real estate usurpation of private property…
Here’s to the people who will die racing the train once built.. what a distraction for drivers, and if anything goes wrong, traffic hits the train? Wahoo!
Of course the train could derail, that never happens, right?