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  • High Speed Rail HSR (Houston - DFW Dallas Fort Worth) (FKA Texas Central )

  • Discussion related to Amtrak also known as the National Railroad Passenger Corp.
Discussion related to Amtrak also known as the National Railroad Passenger Corp.

Moderators: GirlOnTheTrain, mtuandrew, Tadman

 #1539280  by mtuandrew
 
Hard not to politicize this when every respondent has -R next to their name :wink: Though for this, I think that reflects their rural constituencies as much as their party affiliation. Fifty years earlier I suppose their forebears would have lobbied against a superhighway with no exits in their communities as well.

In contrast, the Texas state executives and US Senators seem to still be supporting (or at least neutral about) this project as long as it is privately-developed.
 #1542354  by Jeff Smith
 
https://www.globalrailwayreview.com/new ... struction/
...
The construction of the high-speed rail line in Texas by Webuild, formerly Salini Impregilo, took a step closer to beginning with a ruling by the 13th Court of Appeals of Texas in favour of Texas Central, the project’s developer.

The Court held that Texas Central was both a railroad company and interurban electric railway, giving it the right to survey access and the use of eminent domain along the planned 379km-long trajectory of the line. The Final Environmental Impact Statement on the project is to be published by the Federal Railroad Administration in May 2020.

The project, whose value totals approximately $20 billion – $14 billion of which for the civil works – would be an important investment for Texas and a major boost to the state’s economy, the kind of stimulus proposed by President Donald Trump. This would conservatively lead to an estimated $36 billion in economic benefits state-wide during the next 25 years, including the creation of 10,000 jobs per year during peak construction and 1,500 permanent jobs when fully operational.

The project, which is ready to start, represents a strategic initiative for the state in terms of business and employment along the supply chain in a key area of the United States that has been struck by the sharp drop in oil prices.
...
 #1542362  by Pensyfan19
 
Great to hear! :-D
It is also important to note that a few days ago, the Court finally ruled Texas Central Railway a "railroad" and an "interurban electric railroad". Pretty interesting that the court ruled the latter. Does this mean Texas Central is now an interurban railway like South Shore Line?! ;)
 #1542371  by bdawe
 
Pensyfan19 wrote: Mon May 11, 2020 11:56 am Great to hear! :-D
It is also important to note that a few days ago, the Court finally ruled Texas Central Railway a "railroad" and an "interurban electric railroad". Pretty interesting that the court ruled the latter. Does this mean Texas Central is now an interurban railway like South Shore Line?! ;)
clearly it means that we will have downtown station locations by way of street-running, right?
 #1542373  by Pensyfan19
 
bdawe wrote: Mon May 11, 2020 12:17 pm
Pensyfan19 wrote: Mon May 11, 2020 11:56 am Great to hear! :-D
It is also important to note that a few days ago, the Court finally ruled Texas Central Railway a "railroad" and an "interurban electric railroad". Pretty interesting that the court ruled the latter. Does this mean Texas Central is now an interurban railway like South Shore Line?! ;)
clearly it means that we will have downtown station locations by way of street-running, right?
HECK YEAH!!! :-D :-D :P

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1dfSrjeY0MQ/hqdefault.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dfSrjeY0MQ
 #1544742  by Jeff Smith
 
https://theleadernews.com/feds-close-to ... let-train/
The Texas-based company that wants to construct a high-speed railway between Houston and Dallas is on the verge of clearing a significant hurdle after the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) released its final environmental impact assessment for the project last Friday, May 29.

Two months earlier, the FRA published a notice of proposed minimal safety standards for Texas Central, the Dallas company that plans to import Japanese technology and has been waiting for the FRA to finalize both sets of guidelines for the domestic railway.

FRA spokesperson Warren Flatau said earlier this week that the agency continues to evaluate public comments regarding the environmental impact and proposed rules for Texas Central’s project and expects to issue a final decision this summer. That next step figures to be a formality, according to Texas Central CEO Carlos Aguilar, who said the company has invested more than $65 million toward receiving the go-ahead from the FRA, which published its initial environmental impact statement in December 2017.
...
Among the property Texas Central has secured, Aguilar said, are the planned stations in Houston and Dallas as a well as a midpoint station in Grimes County. The former Northwest Mall site at the intersection of U.S. 290 and Loop 610 is earmarked for the Houston station.
...
 #1552798  by Pensyfan19
 
Well then! This is an interesting [possibly false] claim by the NIMBYs... :P

https://www.kxxv.com/news/local-news/te ... government
Texas Central Railway has deeded property from Texas landowners to the Japanese government through an offshore entity set up in the Cayman Islands, according to the organization Texans Against High Speed Rail.
........
UPDATE:

Texas Central President & CEO, Carlos Aguilar released the following statement in response to Texans Against HSR's press release:

“Despite unfounded rumors to the contrary, Texas Central Railroad, a Texas-based company, owns the property purchased for the state-of-the-art high-speed train project and continues to honor all of the commitments made to the landowners who have participated in the Land Option Purchase Program. ...”
Last edited by mtuandrew on Sat Sep 19, 2020 9:46 am, edited 1 time in total. Reason: Reduced to fair-use quote
 #1552920  by electricron
 
Deeding a property is not the same as having a lien on a property.

Does anyone expect Texas Central to buy property and build a brand new railroad without borrowing money from somebody, including foreign investors? Have you ever not expect lenders from anywhere on this planet to loan large amounts of money without some collateral?
 #1552921  by electricron
 
Central Texas HSR line fits into the Texas Transportation Code as an "Electric Interurban" train.
TRANSPORTATION CODE
TITLE 5. RAILROADS
SUBTITLE D. MISCELLANEOUS RAILROADS
CHAPTER 131. MISCELLANEOUS RAILWAYS
SUBCHAPTER B. ELECTRIC RAILWAYS
Sec. 131.011. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "interurban electric railway company" means a corporation chartered under the laws of this state to conduct and operate an electric railway between two municipalities in this state.
Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 85 (S.B. 1540), Sec. 2.03, eff. April 1, 2011.

Are not Dallas and Houston two municipalities within the state of Texas?
Will not the HSR railroad run on electricity?
Additionally, they could run freight on it and still be considered an interurban electric railway company with this legal definition.
 #1552992  by Pensyfan19
 
Important Update! FRA issues documents clearing path for Texas Central construction!! YEEHAW! :-D

https://trn.trains.com/news/news-wire/2 ... nstruction
DALLAS — Texas Central Railroad, which seeks to build a high speed line between Dallas and Houston, said this morning that the Federal Railroad Administration has has issued two documents approving plans for the railroad and bringing it closer to construction.

In a press release, the railroad reports the FRA has released the final Rule of Particular Ability, which sets the safety rules for the railroad, and the Record of Decision, which completes the environmental review process and sets the route for the railroad.

The Rule of Particular Ability draws largely on the standards set by the Cnetral Japan Railway Co. for its Tokaido Shinkansen system; Texas Central plans to use Shinkansen equipment for its operation. The Record of Decision completes an environmental review process that began in 2014 and led to release of the Final Environmental Impact Statement, a document of more than 10,000 pages earlier this year.
...
edited for brief fair use quote
 #1552995  by electricron
 
Wow! Do you believe it has taken 6 years for a private company to get approval from the Federal government to build a new HSR train in this country using existing safety protocols?

All they have left is the chore of raising the money, building it, and operating it - hopefully at a profit.
 #1552996  by Gilbert B Norman
 
From one who as a kid learned what hysteria NIMBY can bring to an initiative, I doubt if they're done yet.

Likely I am the only member here whose early years were spent in Cos Cob (community within Greenwich) CT where "after the War" (spent in Pittsburgh) I was moved to.

Along about '49, "The Thruway" (Conn Tpke, I-95) was being proposed. I can recall the hysteria (my Mother screaming "they're going to build it right over the top of our house") any routing was causing.

It turns out that the route was at least a mile away and during the Winter if you go down to the corner of Mead Ave and River Rd, you can see the Morano Bridge.

My Mother and Father, Turnpike notwithstanding, "got their price" and we were moved during December '51 to Riverside where my Sister lives in the house to this day.

I also can recall tales by my Grandmother, who lived in "Back Greenwich", about "The Parkway" (CT 15) being routed. That, during the Depression, had one wealthy neighbor having it out with another equally wealthy.

But even those in less wealthy surroundings can also be an effective NIMBY voice. Any around here ever wonder in the Wash area I-95 follows the 495 (Beltway) then, at an inexplicable point diverges North to Baltimore. Ever wonder why I-395 is just a spur ending at NY Ave? Well NIMBYS like Howard University "had their say" and that segment - intended to be the 95 - through a less afluent area of Wash was never completed.
 #1553028  by electricron
 
Gilbert B Norman wrote: Mon Sep 21, 2020 11:37 am From one who as a kid learned what hysteria NIMBY can bring to an initiative, I doubt if they're done yet.

But even those in less wealthy surroundings can also be an effective NIMBY voice. Any around here ever wonder in the Wash area I-95 follows the 495 (Beltway) then, at an inexplicable point diverges North to Baltimore. Ever wonder why I-395 is just a spur ending at NY Ave? Well NIMBYS like Howard University "had their say" and that segment - intended to be the 95 - through a less afluent area of Wash was never completed.
Baltimore is not the only city where nimbys stopped freeway projects. For example, I-40 through Memphis can be added to such a list. But the key thing to remember, these freeways were killed in Federal courts before EPA Act was passed. The EPA’s EIS, DEIS, FEIS, and ROD are all processes designed to get these Federal projects built with appropriate measures initiated for environmental concerns. The key issue being, getting the projects built.

Nimbys have a much harder time killing these projects today in court.
Texas Central HSR is not crossing state or country borders, so there are less Federal regulations and agencies to stop it policy wise. No Federal court has ever stopped a project since the EPA’s process has been implemented over environmental issues.
 #1553036  by Gilbert B Norman
 
Ron, the segment I was addressing was the proposed route of I-95 through Northeast Wash - an area "not exactly Georgetown".

Get out a map of Wash and locate where the 395 ends @ NY Ave. Then locate where 95 and 495 diverge sort of near the New Carrollton Station. Draw a line between those two points and "more or less" that was the proposed segment the NIMBY lobby successfully "whacked" during the 60's.
 #1553041  by eolesen
 
electricron wrote: Mon Sep 21, 2020 11:23 am Wow! Do you believe it has taken 6 years for a private company to get approval from the Federal government to build a new HSR train in this country using existing safety protocols?

All they have left is the chore of raising the money, building it, and operating it - hopefully at a profit.
In government time, that's the blink of an eye.

Interstate 11 (Phoenix-Las Vegas) has been in planning since 1997 (only 20% longer than TCHSR and large portions via publicly owned desert land). 20+ years and over $500M later, less than half the route is up to interstate standards.
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