From Houston Tomorrow:
A possible Houston to Dallas high-speed rail line was the topic of a Monday morning breakfast meeting featuring Yoshiyuki Kasai, the chairman of Central Japan Railway, Japan’s largest rail company and maker of the famed Japanese “bullet trains.” Kasai was hosted by the Greater Houston Partnership (GHP).
The company is developing plans to build a Houston/Dallas high speed rail (largely privately financed) as the first phase of a Texas system, according to the GHP invitation. Kasai used the meeting to brief the region’s business leaders on the details and opportunities that Houston-Dallas high-speed rail service would bring to the Houston region.
This sounds exciting, but it’s hard to know what a timeline for this might be, assuming it really is on track (no pun intended). The potential cost is pretty high, and while there may be federal funds available to offset some of those costs, there are many obstacles that could delay construction. I’m delighted to hear this is happening, but it’s way too early to get too worked up. Dallas Transportation has more.
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