President calls for high-speed rail

AUSTIN (KXAN) - President Barack Obama is calling for the country to move swiftly to a system of high-speed rail travel, including a high-speed rail running right through Austin.

Obama said it will relieve congestion, help clean the air and save on energy. The rail plan for Austin would connect high-speed rail with Dallas-Fort Worth; San Antonio; Texarkana, Texas, Oklahoma City, Okla., Tulsa, Okla. and Little Rock, Ark.

Houston would not connect to that portion of the South-Central High-Speed Corridor. A separate line would connect Houston with New Orleans, which would run a line all the way up to the Northeast.

Appearing with Vice President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood Thursday, Obama said the country cannot afford not to invest in a major upgrade to rail travel. He said he understands it necessarily will be "a long-term project" but said the time to start is now.

Obama said that "this is not some fanciful, pie-in-the-sky vision of the future. It's happening now. The problem is, it's happening elsewhere." He cited superior high-speed rail travel in countries like China, Japan, France and Spain.

The plan is going to be paid for out of the American American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to the initial tune of up to $8 billion.

Obama said the rail upgrades are critically needed because the nation's highways and airways "are clogged with traffic."

Austin and San Antonio seem to be set up well to compete for federal dollars. Local politicians are working on a plan to connect Austin and San Antonio with state funds through an effort pushed by the Austin-San Antonio Rail corridor.

Here are ten corridors the Obama administration had identified for possible high-speed rail projects:

• California corridor (Bay Area, Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Diego)
• Pacific Northwest corridor (Eugene, Portland, Tacoma, Seattle, Vancouver British Columbia)
• South Central corridor (Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Little Rock)
• Gulf Coast corridor (Houston, New Orleans, Mobile, Birmingham, Atlanta)
• Chicago hub network (Chicago, Milwaukee, Twin Cities, St. Louis, Kansas City, Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Louisville)
• Florida corridor (Orlando, Tampa, Miami)
• Southeast corridor (Washington, Richmond, Raleigh, Charlotte, Atlanta, Macon, Columbia, Savannah, Jacksonville)
• Keystone corridor (Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh)
• Empire corridor (New York City, Albany, Buffalo)
• Northern New England corridor (Boston, Montreal, Portland, Springfield, New Haven, Albany)