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  • The Big Picture

    Learn more about why California needs the high-speed train and the plan for building it.

     
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  • Explore the Route

    San Francisco to Los Angeles in 2 hours and 40 minutes. LA to San Diego in 80 minutes. Where will you go? 

     
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  • Project Vision and Scope

    Vision

    Inspired by successful high-speed train systems worldwide, California's electrically-powered high-speed trains will help the state meet ever-growing demands on its transportation infrastructure. Initially running from San Francisco to Los Angeles/Anaheim via the Central Valley, and later to Sacramento and San Diego, high-speed trains will travel between LA and San Francisco in under 2 hours and 40 minutes, at speeds of up to 220 mph, and will interconnect with other transportation alternatives, providing an environmentally friendly option to traveling by plane or car.

    Scope

    800 miles of track… up to 24 stations… the most thorough environmental review process in the nation. Due to the large scope of the project, the planning process proceeded in phases: first, program-level review assessing the need and service area for a statewide system, presenting broad policy choices, and identifying corridors for further study, and second, project-level review in more detail for determining the best alignment and station locations within each of nine system sections. Why? Greater community input, resulting in the best system for all Californians.

     
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  • Economic Benefits Environmental Benefits Community Benefits
    • High-speed rail means tens of thousands of good, family-supporting jobs for California — jobs not just to build the trains and the train line, but also jobs to operate and maintain it. And there’s more — hundreds more jobs will be created for suppliers, restaurants and other businesses along the route.
    • As many as 100,000 construction-related jobs each year that the system is being built
    • The potential for 450,000 permanent new jobs statewide created by the economic growth high-speed rail will generate over the next 25 years
    • Improved movement of people, goods and services
    • Faster travel on the ground between major metropolitan areas
    • Congestion relief on freeways and at airports
     
    • Because the electric power to the trains can be produced by sustainable and renewable power sources like wind and solar, this system will cut air pollution and smog throughout California.
    • Improved air quality
    • Improved energy efficiency: high-speed rail uses only one-third the energy of airplanes and one-fifth the energy of the family car1 
    • Reduced dependence on foreign oil: 12.7 million barrels less per year2 
    • Reduced greenhouse gas emissions: 12 billion pounds less per year3 
    • Cheaper, faster and more convenient travel connected to local public transportation
    • Revitalized communities and economic development around new transportation terminals
    • Transit- and pedestrian-oriented infill development promoted
    • Enhanced public safety due to separation of tracks and existing roads and highways

  • Learn more about the project benefits 

    1ADDENDUM/ERRATA to Final Program EIR/EIS for the Bay Area to Central Valley Portion of the CHST System, California High-Speed Rail Authority, June 2008, S-11
    2The Use of Renewable Energy Sources to Provide Power to California's High-Speed Rail, Navigant Consulting, September 2008
    3Navigant, 4