TRANSPORTATION:

A boost for DesertXpress

Reid uses corridor designation to show backing for private project

Leila Navidi

Senator Harry Reid, with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, holds a press conference about a proposed high-speed train that would go from Las Vegas to Southern California in downtown Las Vegas Thursday, July 2, 2009.

By Lisa Mascaro (contact), Stephanie Tavares (contact)

Friday, July 3, 2009 | 2 a.m.

High-speed train press conference

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Sen. Harry Reid speaks at a press conference on Thursday, July 2, 2009.
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U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood speaks at a press conference on Thursday, July 2, 2009.
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Chris Morris

Path clears for federal support of fast train to California (7-2-2009)
High-speed train plan gets notice in D.C. (6-24-2009)
Public or private, rail line will need major subsidies from government (6-14-2009)
Maglev or DesertXPress, this could be your new ride (6-14-2009)
Trade-offs between technologies include speed, cost (6-14-2009)
Maglev train to press on without Reid (6-10-2009)
Reid sides with Desert Xpress fast train option (6-9-2009)
State sends no representative to talk on high-speed trains (6-5-2009)
Obama outlines vision for high-speed rail network (4-16-2009)
8 states seek stimulus money for high-speed rail (4-15-2009)
No waste in rail dream (3-5-2009)
Economic crisis an opportunity to be greener (3-1-2009)
Vegas, Midwest seek the $8 billion for fast trains (2-23-2009)
Calif. bond would launch bullet train project (9-26-2008)

Nowhere on the official documents from Thursday’s announcement of a new high-speed rail corridor between Las Vegas and Los Angeles is the proposed DesertXpress featured as the preferred project.

But make no mistake: DesertXpress is the chosen one, at least for now.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid backs the private venture, and he let it be known that the privately backed train to Victorville, Calif., not the once-hoped-for magnetic levitation train to Anaheim, was the one for which the Transportation Department’s new corridor is intended.

The publicly run $12 billion maglev proposal has worn out its welcome after 30 years in the planning stages, Reid said. He reiterated that he is ready to put his efforts into the newer DesertXpress.

“I’m not going to put any more of my (time) into maglev,” Reid said. “It’s time for action in this corridor. We’re past the planning stage; we’ve got to move on and start the construction.”

Reid predicted that the $5 billion Desert-

Xpress, backed by his political supporter Sig Rogich, a Republican leader in Nevada, would be up and running by 2012. Ground would be broken early next year, and Reid said it would be built with “40 to 50 percent” private financing, and the rest government loans, if needed.

The announcement Thursday came with a large map showing the DesertXpress route to Victorville, the high-desert outpost 85 miles north of Los Angeles, and its planned spur to Palmdale to connect with California’s planned north-south line connecting San Francisco, Los Angeles and Orange County.

But the Transportation Department made it clear later in the day that it did not supply that map. Also, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood declined to weigh in on the fierce competition between the two Las Vegas trains.

“We believe that the development of regional high-speed passenger rail systems will create jobs, spur economic development and provide positive environmental benefits for all Americans,” LaHood said in a statement.

A Transportation spokeswoman later explained that the department did not choose one train over the other. “We didn’t pick a route,” she said. “We know there are obviously two competing proposals. The states decide.”

Technically, the Las Vegas route is an extension of the department’s existing California corridor, an offshoot of that state’s $45 billion line, which will be financed in part by an $11 billion bond passed by voters last fall.

Establishing a corridor will open the door to allow the Las Vegas project to compete for $8 billion in federal stimulus money passed by Congress this year, as well as other federal aid.

However, DesertXpress does not immediately qualify for that money because it is not a state-sponsored agency, which is required under federal guidelines. No private companies can independently qualify.

DesertXpress has insisted it has no interest in tapping the stimulus money, but said it may want low-interest government loans. The company has said it intends to privately finance 30 percent of the cost, but would borrow the rest — about $3.5 billion.

The Transportation Department runs a loan program that can fund 100 percent of the project, payable in 35 years.

Experts say there are virtually no privately run rail lines in operation anywhere in the world because they cannot be built without public money, and cannot turn a profit. The private monorail system in Las Vegas may soon seek public aid.

DesertXpress issued a statement saying it was “thrilled” with the day’s announcement. The company has poured $25 million into planning documents.

“The solid support expressed for our privately funded DesertXpress project today, as part of a great solution to

I-15 congestion and as a lifeline to Nevada’s tourism industry, is significant,” DesertXpress President Tom Stone said.

The publicly run maglev proposal will continue to press on, its backers said.

“We intend to move ahead,” said Neil Cummings, president of American Magline Group, the private consortium hired by the California Nevada Super Speed Train Commission to build the maglev train.

He understood, however, the message at the conference.

“Certainly, there was no mention of the maglev system,” he said.

Discussion: 16 comments so far…

By markp

7/3/09 at 5:22 a.m.

Suggest removal

big waste, tourists want to see the magrail, people would travel from all over the world would want to see the magrail..

not some crappy railway!!
By Future

7/3/09 at 5:31 a.m.

Suggest removal

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid backs the private venture, and he let it be known that the privately backed train to Victorville, Calif., not the once-hoped-for magnetic levitation train to Anaheim"

The train to nowhere with old polluting technology.

So how much money does the Reid family stand to make? Who are the Lobbyist.

Too big to Fail Harry Reid'm and Weep the scam land barron controls the wild west.
By frank

7/3/09 at 6:59 a.m.

Suggest removal

How about an option that is good for the people who live in Las Vegas, not one that ends at a train station that is nowhere near where you want to go?
Take a look at SolaTrek, which transports you and your car.
By TouristfromCal

7/3/09 at 7:27 a.m.

Suggest removal

In China,after their first maglev train, chinese govt. never went back to Maglev again but use high speed rail in their next projects. Why? Maybe because it is too expensive to build, we dont know, for what I know it is a failure.
By That_Anonymous_Guy

7/3/09 at 8:55 a.m.

Suggest removal

I fear we're on the verge of making the exact same mistake as we did with the monorail, but on a much larger scale.

The monorail proved decisively that it doesn't matter how modern or flashy the transportation system is -- if it doesn't go where people want to go, they won't ride.

People would ride from Las Vegas to Los Angeles (or Anaheim). But unless you provide a virtually seamless link to Los Angeles, they will not ride to Victorville. (And no, a hypothetical link to an outpost 50 miles out of the way does not count.)

Amtrak's Las Vegas-Los Angeles service has been discontinued for a decade. Why aren't we talking about resuming that? I suspect you could start that back up for a tenth or twentieth of what we're talking about spending on DesertXpress.

I'm all for smart mass transit. Anyone that's seen I-15 turn into a parking lot on weekend should be, too. But is this $5 billion project really the solution, or is it LV Monorail, Part II?
By Rocco

7/3/09 at 9:44 a.m.

Suggest removal

stupid no one will ride it ......period.. take from a san diegan ill drive fools
By lvdjlv

7/3/09 at 10:21 a.m.

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There is talk - repeat talk - that the Victorville line would connect with the monorail that currently exists in Las Vegas.

This project will not start up in the first quarter of 2010. I would expect at the earliest it would be the third quarter of 2010.

I imagine there are thousands of issues to be worked out that require long term planning, engineering, and getting Clark County and all the casinos on board as far as the end routes for the line from Victorville are concerned.

There has been talk of the line ending downtown at Fremont Street, connecting with the monorail, and I'm sure some - but not all - casinos will want the line to stop at their resorts as well.

I hope it works, simply because it creates jobs and it will promote tourism IF they can keep the prices at $50 for a one-way ticket. With gas at $3 or $4/gallon then it would be worth it.

Lots of issues to be dealt with, but we will see how serious everyone is about this project in the coming months.
By SlumpDog

7/3/09 at 10:54 a.m.

Suggest removal

That map could actually be the line of people looking for jobs in Victorville.

Seriously, 300 miles with people 3 feet apart would be about 1/2 million people, which is less than the number of jobs lost last month.
By crackedbeak

7/3/09 at 11:32 a.m.

Suggest removal

Politics as usual. I was for it before I was against it. We need to bite the bullet, not the bullet train, and dump Sen. Marvin Milktoast no matter that he is the Senate majority leader. You would think that we would get something out of all that power and position but noooooo, we get the boondoggle express. He hasn't done squat for Nevada or the nation. I don't have 60 votes, 60 votes doesn't mean anything, it's the Republicans, they threaten a filibuster. BULL An ex boxer, maybe in the spineless jellyfish division. Delay and the boys pushed through whatever they wanted without 60 votes. The Dems have the House, the Senate, and the White House. If they can't do the things we need to get done now, WHEN? "The Transportation Department runs a loan program that can fund 100 percent of the project, payable in 35 years" Yea right , like deserted excess will still be around in 10 years, let alone 35. Anyone who votes for an incumbent gets what they deserve. Reid shines and stinks like rotten mackerel by moonlight.
By steve7952

7/3/09 at 6:50 p.m.

Suggest removal

The cost overrun will at least double for this project leaving it to the tax payers to cover.
I don't don't to hear any Reid supporters whinning.
By SlumpDog

7/3/09 at 10:58 p.m.

Suggest removal

I honestly don't know enough about what Harry Reid has done politically to make any opinion. But I've watched him on C-SPAN and he does have the wimpiest personality. He reads off a piece of paper whenever he's making a point or argument. And he's got this voice like he just wants to get away.

I think he's giving us the wimpy solution here. This DesertExpress has been a daydream in the works for 10's of years and they've got the sales team and bag of BS to push out any really innovative ideas. Not to mention the political connections most likely Harry Reid's mom knows someone connected to the DesertExpress and now a favor is being repaid.

I think a magnetically propulsed coaster with big wheels would be the way to go. Use roller coaster technology, but forget using electromagnets to levitate the train. Just make it safe and go real fast and fun to ride.

I really think the people elected to make these decisions are clueless and manipulated, but so what, it's going to be 50 years before the crooked element is weeded out, so just do something.
By lvlarry

7/4/09 at 12:26 a.m.

Suggest removal

Senator Reid is scratching Sig Rogich's back so that he can get his own back scratched even better come his next time up for election.

Senator Reid sold out. Rail to Victorville?!! That sounds so OLD. We have the opportunity to lead the way for maglev, maybe even using some solar power. Let's connect two major tourism powerhouses, Disneyland and Vegas! They may have old Sid and Harry, but we've got Walt and Mickey!

DesertXpress says they don't want to tap any of the proposed stimulus funds but instead want "loans." Do they REALLY intend to pay back the loans? They may come back saying they can't turn a profit and can't pay anymore of the loan. What if Sig Rogich pays himself as much as he can until the route has to get taken over by the government because they supposedly can't turn a profit?! "Experts say there are virtually no privately run rail lines in operation anywhere in the world because they cannot be built without public money, and cannot turn a profit."

GO MAGLEV! Forget Victorville..."I'm going to Disneyland!" The old high-powered politicians want to go 150mph. The PEOPLE want to go 310mph.
By Babyboomer

7/4/09 at 5:02 p.m.

Suggest removal

I think they should run a ski lift.It would take 2 1/2 days,be far far cheaper.With the money saved, they could furnish tons of water bottles for those on their 2 1/2 day trip.If you need to get off,no need to stop the lift...just jump !!
By SlumpDog

7/4/09 at 7:36 p.m.

Suggest removal

Just make the next headline Desert Express embraces new technology and opens up a path for engineers and the public to get involved.

I've got nothing against Harry Reid, I just don't know what his position as Senate Majority Leader is supposed to do for Southern Nevadans. He's giving props to the people who have been proposing a high-speed rail between LA and LV which is obviously the biggest mass transit of people from on place to another, and why not build a train there, but let's get more excited about it when we finally come to terms with the fact that "SOMETHING" is going to be built...

... I think it should break the sound barrier... I want the train to whip around a curve coming over the top of a mountain and shake all the people in their cars.... BBgggghhhkkkffffffsssshhhheeewwwwww.....
Yeeeeehawwwww!!!!

Tunnel through the mountains, elevate through the valleys. Superelevate from BLM land past Indian Reservations. F***, it could be the most exciting thing... but... we're going to watch it all turn into the most boring politically influenced project ever. I'm done commenting on it.
By Patty

9/23/09 at 5:41 p.m.

Suggest removal

DesertXpress is in fact working with state and local governments in Southern California to immediately extend the system 50 miles west in Palmdale to interface with the North-South California High Speed Rail system - connecting Las Vegas to all of California. The system is also designed to facilitate extensions to Ontario and other destinations in the Los Angeles/Orange County Basin, as and when funding becomes available.

The current Maglev project is planned to extend from Las Vegas to Primm -- not Las Vegas to Anaheim. Maglev itself trademarked this as "the first 40 miles." The proprietary Maglev technology would not be easily extendable and could not be integrated with California's voter-approved high speed rail network and any other standard gauge high speed rail lines.

And there is only one application of the Maglev train technology in the world. It is a short 19-mile demonstration segment at Shanghai's Pudong Airport in China. Rather than extend this demonstration project, China chose to terminate utilization of Maglev and implement its own state of the art high speed rail network similar to what is being used in Europe and other parts of Asia.