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Today, HNTB Corp. released results from a recent “America THINKS” survey that shows Americans remain supportive of high-speed rail.

Eighty-eight percent of U.S. citizens are open to using high-speed rail for long-distance travel in the United States, according to HNTB. However, that figure is down slightly from the 94 percent recorded in the last America THINKS survey, which was conducted in March 2009.

Also in last year’s survey, 54 percent of Americans said they would choose high-speed rail over driving or flying to a city in their region; in the most recent survey, conducted earlier this month, that figure had dropped to 38 percent.

Still, 83 percent of U.S. citizens agree that public transit and high-speed rail infrastructure should receive a larger share of federal funding than they do now, according to the study, which was conducted by Kelton Research using email invitations and online surveys.

“Stimulus money is seeding initial projects,” said Peter Gertler, HNTB’s high-speed rail services chair in a prepared statement. “It’ll be up to those of us in the industry — working in partnership with transportation agencies and elected officials — to keep up the momentum.”