Virgin Trains USA has unveiled plans to build an all-electric high-speed train that will connect Southern California with Las Vegas by 2023.
The 273-kilometer high-speed line will connect Las Vegas, Nevada, with Victorville, California – a city about an hour and a half drive northeast of downtown Los Angeles.
Virgin Trains USA, a subsidiary of Fortress Investment Group, announced in a presentation to the Board of County Commissioners in December 2019 that construction is expected to begin this year and be completed in 2023.
However, the dates are currently subject to approval by the US Federal Railroad Administration.
The news of the schedule comes a month after the state of California approved a $ 3.25 billion (£ 2.48 billion) loan application for the project, according to the Las Vegas Review Journal. The rail line is expected to cost $ 4.8 billion (£ 3.66 billion).
Train to Las Vegas and Southern California takes 90 minutes
Virgin Trains USA, currently operating as Brightline through the middle of this year, will adopt its name and branding from the British multinational venture capital company Virgin Group, which has an interest in the company.
If approved, their new line will be built along the US North-South Interstate 15 (I-15), which crosses much of California, and an east-west stretch in Nevada.
The high-speed line is the latest project from Virgin, which has developed a similar system called Brightline in Florida. Photo by Patrick Hamilton, courtesy Wikipedia.
The trains will be fully electric, traveling at 180 miles (290 kilometers) per hour and taking less than 90 minutes. Virgin Trains USA said the trip will cost less than driving or flying.
The east end of the line is said to end a mile south of the Las Vegas Strip, which is home to numerous casinos and hotels. Two stations will also be built as part of the project.
Project modeled on Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach Rail
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Nevada Department of Commerce director Terry Reynolds said equipment and materials are already being secured for the program.
The project is largely based on Brightline’s 112-kilometer system connecting Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. Known as the Brightline, the Florida train is diesel-electric and was completed in January 2018.
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Photo courtesy Shutterstock unless otherwise noted.
