Editorial: Cooperation often beats competition

Friday, April 26, 2002 | 9:49 a.m.

The quest for a high-speed train in the West has led to an alliance between California and Nevada that serves as a lesson for all governmental agencies. Last year Pennsylvania and Maryland were the winners of federal funding for the magnetically levitated trains. It was a year that saw the Southern California Association of Governments and the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission submitting distinct -- and competing -- proposals for the funding. The Southern California group proposed a 92-mile train route linking Los Angeles with Riverside. The California-Nevada group envisioned a project linking Las Vegas with Anaheim, with a 40-mile, $1.4 billion stretch from Las Vegas to Primm as the first phase. After their defeat, the two organizations began working together.

Now, there are still two projects being proposed, but the two groups are united under the umbrella of the Western States Maglev Alliance. The alliance creates a greater chance for securing financing and also represents the possibility of the two projects linking up one day. It's this type of cooperation that could one day lead to a truly integrated mass transportation network in the Las Vegas Valley. Cooperation between Clark County and the city of Las Vegas led to a successful soccer park in the northwest. More such cooperation could lead to solutions for other problems associated with regional growth -- the currently divisive issue of homelessness springs to mind.