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President Obama’s proposed $53 billion federal investment in high-speed and intercity rail over the next six years would help create 1.3 million jobs and serve as a catalyst to attracting additional state, local and private capital that would support and establish even more jobs, according to a new report by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

Titled, “The Case for Business Investment in High-Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail,” the report outlines the direct and indirect economic benefits of federal investment in U.S. high-speed and intercity passenger-rail infrastructure.

The federal dollars will lead to construction jobs, as well as jumpstart the U.S. economy, according to the report. Every $1 billion invested in high-speed rail (HSR) projects creates 24,000 jobs, the report’s analysis indicates.

APTA’s report cited a study done by the Economic Development Research Group for the U.S. Conference of Mayors, which analyzed the business impact of HSR projects in Los Angeles, Chicago, Orlando and Albany, N.Y.

The mayors’ study group projected the impact in L.A. would be $7.6 billion in business sales and 55,000 jobs; in Chicago, $6.1 billion in sales and 42,000 jobs; in Orlando, $2.9 billion in sales and 27,500 jobs; and in Albany, $2.5 billion in sales and 21,000 jobs.

“It’s evident that investment in high-speed rail projects presents one of the clearest and fastest ways to create green, American jobs and spur long-term economic growth,” said APTA President William Millar during a media conference call today.

Joining Millar at the media conference were three private-sector leaders of transportation businesses interested in bidding on U.S. HSR and intercity passenger-rail projects: Charles Wochele, vice president for industry and government relations at Alstom Transport; Kevin McFall, senior VP at Stacy and Witbeck Inc., a public transit construction firm; and Jeffrey Wharton, president of IMPulse NC, which designs and manufactures overhead contact system hardware for the mass transit industry.

“Federal high-speed rail investment is a strong driver in getting private companies to invest,” McFall said, adding that there is excitement among global private-sector businesses about the possibility of HSR construction in the United States .

“Teams are being formed, innovative ideas are being discussed and financial aspects are being considered” about proposed projects, McFall said. “This energy is building at a high pace.”

Alstom’s Wochele said he’s puzzled why HSR has evolved into a partisan political issue in the United States, because HSR has been successful in every corner of the world where it’s been built. Worldwide ridership has doubled in the past 10 years and is projected to double again over the next 10.

“Investment in high-speed rail is an investment in the future,” he said. “I don’t understand why there is so much controversy over it because we need to do something to invest in our future and move our people.”

Although three Republican governors have rejected billions in federal HSR grants, the fact that 24 other states — many of them led by Republican governors — the District of Columbia and Amtrak have applied for $2.4 billion in redirected HSR grants rejected by Florida indicates bipartisan support for building HSR and expanding intercity passenger rail, APTA’s Millar said.

Yet, the United States is “late to the party” when it comes to developing HSR, Millar and the other speakers said.

“U.S. businesses have been known for their cutting edge technologies and innovations,” IMPulse NC’s Wharton said. “We need to put this expertise to work, providing business and employment opportunities while catching up to the rest of the world in high-speed rail and its associated benefits.”

— Julie Sneider