A Rail Revolution Begins with Fixing Chicago Union Station. Creating the Nation's High-Speed Rail Hub Sign the Petition Watch and share the short video Miles of opportunity. All leading to Union Station. When you move millions of people across tens of thousands of...
High Speed Rail Alliance 2024-2025 Action Report
2024 was a year of progress.
The United States now has two high-speed lines under construction. Thanks to this and fresh starts for new and improved service in nearly every state, American travelers can have a better, brighter future.
Let’s get there faster.
Brightline West aims to have 200 mph trains running between Las Vegas and California by 2028. The project broke ground in April 2024.
“For the first time in decades, there is a real opportunity and hunger for investments in high-speed rail projects”
Metra CEO Jim Derwinski (left) keynoted an Alliance luncheon in Chicago in 2024, and Rep. Chuy García (D-IL) also spoke in favor of high-speed rail for the Midwest.
Letter from Alliance Leadership
Are you as committed as ever to bringing great trains to North America?
At the High Speed Rail Alliance, we are.
With new starts underway all over the country, now is exactly the time to keep advocating for fast electrified trains, modernized stations, and round-the-clock service for all kinds of travelers. It’s important not to settle for less.
Any major political change raises questions about what comes next—but through the Alliance, you can make your voice heard to elected officials, regardless of party.
In fact, we have navigated this before. For example, despite decades-long attempts in Congress to defund Amtrak, our national passenger railroad is still running, thanks to advocates like you.
American passenger trains are now poised for major expansion:
- Two segments of high-speed line are under construction.
- Brightline Florida has created a successful model for American regional rail.
- Early planning work for 69 projects in 44 states has been funded, with bipartisan support.
Great trains can do so much for big cities and small towns throughout America. They make travel easier, safer, and more affordable. They allow families and friends to see each other more often. They open up more employment, educational, and cultural opportunities. They make business travel easier and more productive.
We’ve made important progress toward a better future with great trains as a part of everyday American life. Together, let’s keep moving forward.
Alliance Objectives
We’re making progress on all three of the Alliance’s top objectives.
1) Establish a Federal Railway Program
The 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law created a new program called Corridor Identification and Development. Corridor ID has funded initial planning for new and improved service in nearly every state.
The current federal process has six steps (learn more). Most projects are now in Step 1. We now effectively have a pipeline of projects to move through the remaining steps. Additional funding will be needed, but this can provide the basis for a longtime Alliance objective—the establishment of a railway program to coordinate and fund a new nationwide network of high-speed and other trains.
2) Get one American high-speed line in operation this decade
The United States now has two high-speed lines under construction. Congressional leaders including Representative Seth Moulton (D-MA) have stepped up, by introducing legislation such as the American High Speed Rail Act. If passed, it would invest $205 billion in fast trains over a five-year period.
3) Invest in the national rail hub in Chicago
The Illinois High-Speed Railway Commission has hired a consultant to create a recommended path for high-speed trains between Chicago and St. Louis. This is the first state-sponsored study of a Midwestern high-speed line that is open to public input.
You are driving initiatives like this through your support of the Alliance. In 2021, supporters like you gave the Alliance the backing needed to help create the Illinois High-Speed Railway Commission in the first place. This is important because of Chicago’s role as a nationwide rail hub, and because the state of Illinois has strong political influence in Washington, DC.
A train line is “cheaper than building the airports and highway expansions you would need to meet 2050 travel demand if you didn’t have high-speed rail. I have used that argument in House debates in the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and it’s pretty darn effective.”
Vision for 2025 and Beyond
Together…
We can inform, persuade, and support elected officials and local leaders to advocate for fast, frequent, affordable trains in every region of the country—tying it all together into a truly new nationwide network.
We can convince leaders in Illinois to establish a statewide rail program that makes Chicago the hub of a high- speed rail network with hundreds of daily trains to and from cities and towns across the country. And we can leverage the political heft of the Midwest and Chicago’s geography to build a strong foundation for the whole country.
It takes an Alliance to make great trains
Join thousands of members working to transform travel across the U.S.
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