Photo credit: Brightline WestSouthern California – The Biden Administration, announced Friday, that they are awarding up to $3 billion to Brightline West, a high speed train that will have stations in Rancho Cucamonga and Apple Valley on its way to Las Vegas.
The Brightline West Project is one of ten projects that received grant funds through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law – a $66 billion investment in passenger rail. The Administration says it’s the largest since the creation of Amtrak 50 years ago.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is building out a pipeline of passenger rail projects in every region of the country in order to achieve the President’s vision of world-class passenger rail,” said the White House press release.
Grant funding will go towards repairing aging rail infrastructure to increase train speeds, reduce delays, and benefit freight rail supply chains to boost America’s economy.
Brightline West removing emissions and creating jobs
The Administration said high-speed rail projects, such as Brightline West will take millions of cars off the roads and reduce emissions.
Brightline West expects to serve more than 11 million passengers annually. The Administration says the all-electric train sets will help remove an estimated 400,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year.
In addition, the White House says the project will create 35,000 jobs supporting construction and support 1,000 permanent jobs in operations and maintenance once in service.
“Brightline’s agreement with the California State and Southern Nevada Building Trades will ensure that this project is built with good-paying union labor, and the project has reached a separate agreement with Rail Labor to employ union workers for its ongoing operations and maintenance,” said the White House press release.
2027 expected opening
Brightline says the 218-mile passenger rail service will operate from Rancho Cucamonga to Las Vegas with 96% of its alignment within the median of the I-15 highway.
Photo credit: Brightline WestTrains will be capable of reaching top speeds of 200 mph – about a 2 hour and 10 minute trip one way.
The project will also allow for connections to the Los Angeles Metro area via the Metrolink commuter rail system.
The company anticipates a 2027 opening for services to begin.
For more information about Brightline West visit https://www.brightlinewest.com/
