Free Republic

The Brightline West system will reach speeds of 200 miles per hour across a 218-mile route between Las Vegas and three California stops including Rancho Cucamonga, about 40 miles east of Los Angeles...The project received $3 billion in funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the rest will be privately funded...

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A high-speed bullet train from Southern California to Las Vegas is a step closer to reality. Brightline, the company that will build the system, has announced a landmark labor agreement with the High-Speed Rail Labor Coalition, which is "compromised of 13 rail unions representing more than 160,000 freight, regional, commuter, and passenger railroad workers in the United States." The $10 billion investment is expected to create nearly 35,000 jobs during construction and over 1,000 permanent jobs once operational, according to a press release from Brightline. The fully-electric train will be able to travel 200 miles an...

With its funding plans clearer, South Florida passenger start-up Brightline is looking west for its next venture into private high speed rail.Brightline on Tuesday said it had acquired XpressWest, a high-speed passenger rail project with rights to develop a federally approved corridor connecting Southern California and Las Vegas. he project would be only the second privately funded intercity passenger rail in the United States after Brightline. No terms were disclosed. “Brightline is changing transportation in our country by connecting heavily trafficked corridors that are too long to drive and too short to fly,” said Wes Edens, co-founder and co-chief executive...