Brightline West breaks ground on high-speed rail line

Brightline West, the private intercity passenger-rail company, held an official ground-breaking ceremony on what will become a 218-mile, high-speed rail line connecting Las Vegas to Southern California.

The system will be constructed in the middle of Interstate 15 and feature zero-emission, fully electric trains capable of speeds of 200 mph.

The project recently was awarded $3 billion in funding through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. The rest of the project will be privately funded and has received a total allocation of $3.5 billion in private activity bonds from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

"People have been dreaming of high-speed rail in America for decades," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a press release. "It’s finally happening."

Buttigieg was among several government, private-sector and union dignitaries attending the event, held at the site of the future terminal south of the Las Vegas strip. Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo; U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada; U.S. Reps. Pete Aguilar Norma Torres of California  and U.S. Reps. Dina Titus, Susie Lee and Steve Horsford of Nevada also attended.

The rail line’s route, which has full environmental clearance, will run within the median of I-15 with zero grade crossings. The system will have stops in Las Vegas and Victor Valley, Hesperia, and Rancho Cucamonga, California.

The privately led infrastructure project is one of the largest in the nation and will be constructed and operated by union labor. It will use 700,000 concrete rail ties, 2.2 million tons of ballast and 63,000 tons of 100% American steel rail during construction, Brightline West officials said.

Upon completion, the rail system will include 322 miles of overhead lines to power the trains.

"This is a historic project and a proud moment where we break ground on America’s first high-speed rail system and lay the foundation for a new industry," said Wes Edens, Brightline founder. "Today is long overdue, but the blueprint we’ve created with Brightline will allow us to repeat this model in other city pairs around the country."