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The California-Nevada Interstate Maglev project is proposing the construction of a 269-mile Maglev train line from Las Vegas, Nevada to Anaheim, California. The first 40-mile segment received $45 million in 2005 for the planning phase. This segment would run from Las Vegas to Primm, Nevada, with proposed service to the new Las Vegas Airport. The project is being researched seriously, particularly by the German consortium behind the Transrapid, who hope to build it as a demonstrator line in the hope of attracting future business; it would be the first long-distance application of Transrapid technology. However, American Magline Group, working with the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission, has received most of the government funds released so far.
History In the late 1970s and 1980s, Nevada politicians talked of a "bullet train" to connect Southern California to Las Vegas. Since the 1997 termination of the Amtrak Desert Wind, Las Vegas has been without any passenger train service. Plans to resume service using a Talgo train have failed to gain traction due to the high cost of upgrades to the existing track, much of it being only a single track as of 2006. With McCarran International Airport expected to reach capacity in a few years and I-15 upgrades for more lanes an on-going project, an alternative mode of transportation between Southern California and Las Vegas is considered important by many transportation planners. As a result, a maglev train was proposed in the late 1990s. Operating on a dedicated track, it would not be subject to delays from freight trains, a problem that plagued the old Amtrak service. As a high-speed service, it would be able to compete with airlines for passengers, especially from the outlying areas of Southern California. Funding received to date: Proposed stations Amtrak Amtrak has proposed upgrading the existing rail line to allow high-speed Talgo trains. The implementation of this option appears to be in limbo since the Union Pacific claims to lack capacity on the existing rail line. DesertXpress Enterprises DesertXpress Enterprises has proposed a privately owned high-speed rail line running nonstop from Victorville, California to Las Vegas, a 200-mile run along the I-15 corridor. The Federal Railroad Administration public scoping meetings on July 25, 2006 and July 26, 2006 could lead to a EIS for the project. | ||||||||
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