Private Firm Planning Bullet Trains in Texas by 2020
IRVING – The leaders of Texas Central High-Speed Railway sound very confident for a company expecting to succeed where scores of state planners, elected officials and private interests have failed.
The firm hopes to have bullet trains moving Texans at 205 miles per hour between Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston by 2020.
The bit that has raised eyebrows: The company plans to do it without seeking public financing.
“We are not the traditional state-run railroad,” Robert Eckels, the company's president and a former Harris County judge, said at a high-speed rail forum in Irving on Tuesday. “This is designed to be ...
Comments (14)
Dana Markus-Wolf via Texas Tribune on Facebook
I wish Austin could be a main hub for high speed rail to Dallas/Fort Worth, San Antonio and Houston.
Kim Possible Davies via Texas Tribune on Facebook
As it should be.
Jalapeño Schwartz via Texas Tribune on Facebook
This stupid state wouldn't spend the money anyway!
EyesOfTX
Such a pipe dream. Of COURSE it is not remotely possible to do this without massive government subsidy. If rail were in any way competitive, AMTRAK wouldn't need billions from the government every year, and California's government wouldn't be about to further bankrupt itself with Jerry Brown's own lunatic high speed rail scheme. The influence of radical anti-development "environmental" groups and their ability to massively increase the cost and delay the permitting of projects like this makes them completely uneconomic without huge government monetary infusion.
Ann Richards was talking about high speed rail from San Antonio to Dallas when she was governor 20 years ago. If it were feasible, it would already exist. Sorry.
Kim Possible Davies via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Too many liberals environmentalists in Austin to let happen. The environmentalists will block it to protect endangered species and the liberals would block it bc they'd want it subsidized by the govt so it would not be private public transportation that also provides nongovernment jobs.
Kim Possible Davies via Texas Tribune on Facebook
*liberals and environmentalists.
Robert Rister via Texas Tribune on Facebook
The objections to the Trans Texas Corridor came from landowners of all political persuasions. Where I lived, a six-mile trip to the nearest grocery store would have become an 80-mile trip through the nearest access point. Similar issues will probably arise with this project. They could be handled, but they'll have to be.
Samdavis
Southwest Airlines via contributions to people like Tom DeLay, has fought this kind of plan for over 20 years. We could have had it by now if not for shortsighted and corrupt political leaders.
Elmo
Years ago we had TEXAS TGV (French) come here under Ann Richards saying we are going to build one DFW to Waco and then tbone to Houston and San Antonio just outside Waco. Well they said no tax funds needed only private. Then all of sudden once they started to get serious they figured they needed tax money . People, mass transit is not free and cannot make it without TAX MONEY. Ask Amtrak who loses billions a year. This is a boondoggle waitng to happen people .
V Marshall
Austin has one of the most expensive (to taxpayers) public transportation system in the world so obviously we want them to design a rail plan for the state. Just because something is a "cool" idea, doesn't make it a good idea. Who is going to be riding this rail system? What are they going to do for transportation once they get to their destination? How much are they willing to pay for a ticket. Last time I was in the UK, a rail ticket from London to Edinburgh was 1/3 more expensive than a plane ticket because subsidies had been cut, BritRail is still 1/2 subsidized by taxes. We cannot afford to fund our public schools. Taxpayer funding for universities as declined dramatically in just the decade I have lived in Texas. Medicaid costs in Texas increases by over 20% a year. All of these programs are essential investments and yet we cannot fund them. However we are to believe that somehow there is enough room in the budget to float 10s of billions in bonds to build a high speed rail system that will then require heavy taxpayer subsidies to make it viable to operate???
Warner DeFord via Texas Tribune on Facebook
There was the Texas Electric Railway that ran from Dallas to Denison, Waco, and Corsicana from 1916 to 1948... It was phased out when people were once again able to purchase new automobiles after WW2.... http://libraries.uta.edu/SpecColl/crose01/txrail.htm
Lovablelabby 2012
Mr. DeFord is correct, several Texas cities were connected by high-speed intercity rail called Interurbans. Most were out of business by the middle of the depression because they couldn't pay the increased property taxes on the public right-of-way they used. Most of the tracks were pulled up in WW2 for the steel.
However, most of the private power companies that owned the Interurbans evolved into today's electric utilities.
Message is that Ivy educated lawyers in state legislatures were not educated to solve problems or manage businesses. Vote them out in November.
Paul Wendland
Consultants game, that is all. Sell a few studies for a million dollars each, pass them out. Decide its not worth it. Use study as a dust collector on a bookshelf at expensive engineering, law firm, and Bob Eckels' office. Repeat in 10 years.
David Spratt
Move freight at 205 mph and you might have something. People not, no one will pay the price per head.