This week, the leaders of the Honolulu rail project announced it was running a year late and a billion dollars over budget. Backers of a different kind of train project are hoping their plans are more successful. This one involves Las Vegas, Southern California and a consortium of Chinese companies. HPR’s Bill Dorman has details in today’s Asia Minute.
The idea has been kicked around for years. A gambler’s bullet train—a high speed railway linking Las Vegas and Los Angeles, or at least a southern California location relatively close to Los Angeles.
This week, Chinese officials said the project is moving forward—thanks to a joint venture involving a private U.S. company called “Xpress West” and a consortium of Chinese companies.
There’s still a lot of uncertainty about the proposal. One example: Chinese officials describe the route as linking Las Vegas and Los Angeles. But according to the Xpress West website, the California station is in Victorville—more than 80 miles from Los Angeles. Other details remain unclear—including the financing of the project and its overall cost.
The Chinese group is comprised of subsidiaries from several state-owned firms, including the China Railway Group and the China State Construction Engineering Corporation, among others. China has built thousands of miles of high-speed rail lines in different parts of the country and is looking for additional opportunities overseas. While a number of questions linger about the Las Vegas project, a Chinese official told a news conference the target for breaking ground is next year.
