Hi-speed train system!

The United States should raise the federal gasoline tax by a sensible amount and put the money into building and maintaining railways and public transportation. That would be a good first step toward making our country more energy efficient and toward improving our transportation system. Without adequate funds those things are never going to happen.

It's not affordable in part because innovation is stifled.

Also, they are building an upper crust / maybe upper middle class transit system. The same thing happened to Amtrak on the east coast. Reservation system, amenities, jack the price way up.

Finally, the embezzlement of railroad funds may in fact be the biggest cost factor on your ticket price. I have seen $120 million of "railroad improvement" grant money go toward moving the railroad station away from the center of the city and away from the bus plaza. Why? A connected private company owned the land underneath those railroad tracks. They wanted to sell that land at a big profit. And, that's how the deal went down.

It has to be affordable for all the people. The greater good of the greater number.

I voted yes on prop 1a. I have hope that we can really get it together and build this mother!
If we stick to business as usual, It will cost twice as much to build more freeway lanes and we will continue our dependency on foreign oil. We will also increase or green house gas emissions if we don't start this now. Maybe I'm just optimistic but I think it will happen soon.

I'm only saying that more raw speed always lowers the transit system's miles per gallon, or the equivalent if the system burns through electricity.

ok, so if not fossil fuel, what are we using for this? is this just like a Metro, but faster?

Top speed isn't everything. Door to door quickness is a better measure of a transit system. Top speed is only a wet dream for fuel-burners.

As an inventor, I despise and mock any governing system that locks most inventors out of participating in this train's design. It could be quicker. It could be safer. It could be far cheaper for the same performance. It could use less energy. It could move more people. It could be more convenient.

Where are the voters who want almost all good transit innovations to go to the grave with their inventors. Somehow that's what you voted for, all of your adult life. Transit is a monopoly with one or two private companies doing all the developing. So they don't need inventors. Ever! So you get insipid transit research and development from the tracks to the last mile into your garage to the safety controls.

With this single, direct route through San Jose--and definitely faster than driving the 101 Freeway--Dionne Warwick may have to change her song "Do You Know The Way To San Jose" to "Do You Know How Fast to San Jose." =)

This is great! California is long overdue for a high-speed train.

Just wondering, is this similar to the high-speed train in Germany? I think the name of it is ICE (InterCityExpress).

it'll be so nice not to have to fly to los angeles in the wintertime anymore. plus it runs right through both cities i'd be traveling to/from.

yay!

they could use one that goes from L.A. to Las Vegas

right through my town of TURLOCK!
right between Modesto and Merced.

now we just need BART to come out this far

The Japanese conceived their Bullet Train almost 50 years ago & have since enjoyed safe, efficient & environmentally beneficial rail travel in a mountainous, earthquake prone country comparable to the size of California.

However, if you build it (including the cost overruns) how are you going to get prospective passengers to stop driving their cars - one of America’s favorite pastimes?

So happy that this passed. I'm a supporter despite not living in CA. But I feel as though if a big state like CA can do this a big state like Texas can too. This would be really amazing for my state and others across our great nation. Glad it's happening!

More Jobs, Less Traffic, Less Fossil Fuels. Who couldn't do the math before? Did the Govanator have a bad Monorail experience at Disneyland?

i'm a huge proponent of rail travel. we need rails in the states like they have over in Europe. especially here on the east coast. we need a high speed rail that goes from miami to boston and stops in DC, Baltimore, Philly, NYC, etc... The Acela train ain't cutting the mustard.

mass transit is well over due

Pretty smart move by California when it's mainly broke due to the majority of the wildfires this year to plan something that will cost an arm and a leg during our recession to raise California residents already ridiciously high taxes even higher, all so people can save a couple of hours from one end of the state to the next ???

This is such a waste of money. Prop 1A does not guarantee that the train will actually be built. By the way, has anyone asked how many people, on a yearly basis, actually travel from San Diego to Sacramento? I did some research and not even a million people a year travel from one to the other. I think we need a high speed train for goods only. Imagine if we had thousands of less Semis on the road! Now that would be a awesome investment.

Yeah! Californian progress right here. I just hope we have enough money for it.

California can barely pay for books in many of their school districts, why should we keep putting money into over-the-top infrastructure when we can barely handle the simple necessities.

SF to LA in 2.5 hours! Can't wait to see the hubs/terminals that are going to be built!!!! So exciting!

BTW anyone knows when the new bay bridge is going to be done?

yup i voted for that one

Oh hell yeah. Welcome to the 20th century Californians.

sweet just like japan.

Columbus can use one.

Yes please!

There is nothing better than a stress free ride. North Americans are obsessed with driving! They love their trucks and big SUVs. I never understood why an average person who has a small family and does not own a business needs to drive a truck or an SUV. It's about time we switch to more efficient public transportation. Not only it's better for your environment but also for your mental health and the stress you face every day driving in the rush hour..

North America is in desperate need for high speed rail roads.

I think there are too many stations/stops. How fast can it be, if it stops so many times? A more direct route, with stations placed in rural areas, would make fewer stops & starts conserving more fuel. Perhaps a secondary light rail or another way to bring commuters to the dense urban areas. I think the route presented as it is, would add to the congestion and do little to relieve any gridlock.

I CAN'T WAIT FOR IT NOW!!! woohooo!!!

This all SOUNDS great, but the law that Prop 1A passed did not guarantee that they would actually build anything...it only provided the money for studies, and prep work...which Californians have passed a number of times. The money gets spent, and the study finds that it isn't feasible right now. As far as "high speed", it might be able to hit 200 mph in some sections of the San Joaquin Valley, but trains currently go about 15 mph up Tehachepi Pass (between Bakersfield and Palmdale on that map), and also through Rose Canyon into San Diego. Geography (mountains) precludes "high speed" over much of the route. Even though I am a huge proponent of passenger rail, I voted against it. Looks like California got taken again.

one in california, i give it a couple of months before it snaps in half because of an earthquake

Finally!

I love how you all speak like California's high speed rail is one of the greatest things going on, and yet not paying any attention to the reasons against it. Namely its lack of proper funding, it's expected cost of $80 billion, its intrusive pathway through many state and national parks, and it's lack of a budgetary plan. Californians just funded something equivalent to the bailout we all loved so much.

I would love to see this train running in my life time.
Now we just need to get better public transit in LA so when I get there I don't need to drive.

God knows we need it here in DC.

As long as this is funded locally by Californians who would benefit from this fine. It is highly likely that unless private contractors are use it will take 3 times longer and 2.5 times the original cost.

If you can't convince people to car pool in California, how are you going to convince them to take the train.

California is all about the bling, cosmetic surgery and over the top celebrities.

Here's an idea, take all of the left over Obama presidential funding, and combining it with donations from the celebrities who want to "make a difference".

Or take all of the illegal aliens provide them with socical security numbers, have them do the work and set a minimum contribution level for citizen ship and this may get it done twice as fast for half the cost.

next up, we need a Maglev from CA to NY.

Make your life even faster so that you have even lesser time for your family.

Then pay taxes from your hard earned money.

It was the automakers along with Big Oil and the tire makers who killed mass transportation in America. This was profound in that without mass transit we got urban sprawl, which now makes mass transit unfeasible. The problem is not getting there, its how do you get around in the burbs once you arrive.

Perhaps mass adoption of the shared urban car model might go hand in hand with mass transit.

Walking is great when it is not raining, you do not have baggage, you have only a few blocks to travel the entire time you are at your destination, it is not night, it is not cold, it is not snowing, it is not hilly, you are young and healthy, etc. etc. etc.

All the ifs make mass transit iffy.

The way to accomplish this is to involve the ailing American automakers. Right now with the death knell of an industry ringing in their ears, high-speed rail might look like a good hedge and business development opportunity.

Well, it will save all the fuel IF enough people ride it. But, I think the time may be right for this, and actually, there should be a coast to coast high speed rail system. What we have, compared to the other advanced world countries, is pitiful.

It's about freaking time. I'd rather have my tax dollars go to rebuilding the nation rather than go into some bigwig's vacation fund.

Atlanta's been wanting one for years. a Macon-Atlanta-Chattanooga train would take on a lot of the workers that drive over an hour to work there.

too bad the train won't go up into the north valley and hit cities like chico and redding to keep them connected.

...and that's why I voted for it!