With the new trains being built for faster, more reliable service across the country, California and Amtrak have agreed to cooperate on many designs to produce trains that could operate on both coasts.
California is planning a 220-m.p.h. high-speed line to operate between San Francisco and Los Angeles, with the first 130-mile segment currently scheduled to be in operation in 2022.
Amtrak wants to replace its existing Acela Express fleet with trains that can match the Acela’s current top speed of 150 m.p.h. and are capable of being modified to run up to 220 m.p.h. on the Northeast Corridor between Washington, D.C., and Boston.
Eventually, that would allow 37-minute trips between Philadelphia and New York, 94-minute trips between New York and Washington, and 2 ½-hour trips between Philadelphia and Boston.
Amtrak has estimated that it would cost $151 billion and take until 2040 to complete a rebuilt 438-mile Northeast Corridor.
Amtrak president Joseph Boardman and California High-Speed Rail Authority chief executive Jeff Morales said they would join forces to develop high-speed trains that could operate on both coasts.
Click here to read a related release from the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP).