Sun editorial:

Build rail for the future

Proposed maglev link from Las Vegas to Southern California a winning idea

Tuesday, June 16, 2009 | 2:05 a.m.

This nation must do a far better job of cleaning up the environment and reversing its dependency on fossil fuel consumption, which contributes to global warming.

One solution is to develop a nationwide network of high-speed rail lines that not only could rival the connectivity of the U.S. interstate highway system, but also could do a far better job of relieving traffic congestion while getting passengers to their destinations faster. Having cleaner air to breathe would be a bonus.

As reporters Lisa Mascaro and Richard Velotta reminded Las Vegas Sun readers Sunday, the city now has two competing high-speed-rail proposals that aim to connect Southern Nevada with Southern California. But only one of them, a magnetic levitation train that can travel up to 300 miles an hour, truly represents the future and can help advance this nation’s transportation system far beyond where it is today.

The downside of the other proposal, for the DesertXpress system, which would employ the antiquated technology of steel wheels on steel tracks, is that it would travel at only half the speed and go only as far as Victorville, Calif.

Proponents of the maglev line, a nonprofit venture that would be overseen by the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission, intend to run their line to Anaheim, Calif. This represents a significant advantage over DesertXpress for many reasons.

One is that Southern Californians traveling to Las Vegas aboard a maglev train would avoid the horrendous traffic that turns the route from the Interstate 10/Interstate 15 interchange to the Cajon Pass into a parking lot. Driving to Victorville, which is nearly 100 congested miles northeast of Los Angeles, would add hours to their commute, increase air pollution and leave motorists frustrated.

Another advantage of maglev is that there are plans to connect the Las Vegas line with a high-speed route running from San Diego to San Francisco and Sacramento. If you live in Las Vegas and want to visit California, you could take the train to those destinations rather than having to rent a car in Victorville to continue your journey.

Finally, the Las Vegas and California links could serve as vital building blocks in the quest for a national high-speed-rail network.

It is for these reasons that we strongly urge the Obama administration and Congress to include the proposed Las Vegas maglev train in the funding mix for the $8 billion in federal money set aside for high-speed-rail development.

Discussion: 12 comments so far…

By Brian_C__Brooks

6/16/09 at 6:51 a.m.

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My approval of the maglev proposal appeared in a comment related to the first article. I also described a lower cost alternative that was much better than steel wheels on steel rails. Monorail can be developed to operate quietly at 150 mph and can easily descend through the Cajon pass and connect with all parts of southern California and with the proposed high speed rail systems and allow much shorter routes for them. Is anyone interested in this elegant solution?
By El_Lobo

6/16/09 at 7:47 a.m.

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I agree....the magnetic levitation train model is the way to go. It truly represents "real progress." Dumping passenger off at Victorville is hardly the answer. Traveling at 300 miles an hour is far better than traveling at 150 miles an hour.

I also agree that it's time to "do a far better job of cleaning up the environment and reversing its (our) dependency on fossil fuel consumption...."

Those in the know tell us that the world's supply of oil is going to peak some time after 2010. In other words, there's going to be less and less oil world wide as countries such as China and India demand a larger share of the oil avialable...

It's time the United States starts acting like a world leader.....it's time we become the leader when it comes to energy. It's time to build a new energy mouse trap......

Let's start with the magnetic levitation train and go from there....
By scherf_com

6/16/09 at 9:47 a.m.

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This is an excellent Editorial by the Sun!
The MAGLEV proposal is the only viable option for a high-speed train system and it has a shot a great success, ... I know I will most definitely ride/use it, ... and I know lots of people from LA and Las Vegas who would love the MAGLEV system and are even excited about it.

The old-tech DesertXpress is an absolut lost cause, because virtually nobody would use the DesertXpress, ... because who in the world would want to travel to or from Victorville and it would be a tremendous hassle to connect from/to Victorville and therefore the DesertXpress is a losing proposition, ... it's not even worth considering it. It would be a grand financial disaster in the billions of dollars and it would be a "ghost" line nobody uses.

Well, I'm glad the Sun wrote this Editorial which is accurate and encouraging in all its aspects as the MAGLEV magnetic levitation train system is the best in the world, even if it costs a lot more, but that's the future. It would be great to have this system all across the U.S. and with a little "luck" we could get it over the next couple decades. The MAGLEV is also a very safe form of transportation and it's convenient in every regard. And the MAGLEV is the evironmentally best solution anyone can come up with and regarding the "green" (environmental) aspect the MAGLEV is decades ahead of the DesertXpress proposal.
By Future

6/16/09 at 10:29 a.m.

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Do not sweat the details.

What ever Harry Reid wants we must do.

Get over it.

It about what benefits the Reid family the most.

Get over it.
By Patrick_R_Gibbons

6/16/09 at 10:34 a.m.

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High Speed Rail is the Wrong Idea : http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-625.pdf

Subsidies are not progress - we subsidized rail roads in the 1800s and that resulted in corporate welfare bans in Nevada and Arizona - and millions of dollars wasted building poorly designed rail.

If it can't make money on its own it shouldn't be built. Subsidies mean losses are socialized and profits are privatized. Capitalism should not be reserved for the rich only.
By neiman1

6/16/09 at 11:13 a.m.

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harry Reid made a political decision to try and save his seat in the next election. For the Sun to take an opposing position just because the MagLev is a better proposal economically and ecologically is amazing.

Is there trouble in Paradise? Is the Sun encouraging a revolt against harry? With Reids trying to control all of Nevada it shocks me to see their propaganda arm oppose the Senator's attempt to buy off parts of the Republican Party for the next election. Very Interesting.
By atdleft

6/16/09 at 11:23 a.m.

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neiman-

OMG, The Sun's editorial board thinks for itself?! SO you finally noticed? That's why I come here more often than that other paper.

El Lobo-

Agreed. Not only is maglev great technology that deserves a shot in the US, but their plan to connect Las Vegas to Anaheim is much smarter and much more likely to succeed than Sig Rogich's "Gravy Express" to Victorville.
By jimharper

6/16/09 at 1:10 p.m.

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The perfect is the enemy of the good. A true (by that I mean grade-separated electric 220 mph) HSR will cover the distance from downtown LA to Las Vegas in 2 hours with a stop or two along the way.

At 250 miles, it will just obliterate all air traffic between the two cities based on experience elsewhere, and grow ridership at maybe a 7% per year pace. It will also cost $30 million per mile, or $8 billion. Isn't that enough?

Why do without for five extra years in hopes of getting maglev?

(Yeah, Victorville is a non-starter).
By Patrick_R_Gibbons

6/16/09 at 3:39 p.m.

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With all the money on the line I'm not surprised to see supporters of both creating their own profiles... corporate welfare.
By deltatango

6/16/09 at 8:17 p.m.

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It's better to leave maglev for the Jetsons. Electrified high speed rail is already providing service over thousands of miles of track in Europe and Asia. There are at least 5 manufacturers of HSR equipment to provide competitive bids for trains and infrastucture.

Best of all, if the California project is built, trains to and from LV could connect to dozens of California cities --provided the two lines are built to be compatible. A single standard for HSR projects is just too logical and obvious to be ignored. The Washington state rail authority is already discussing a possible Pacific Northwest HSR line to link with the California project.
By botoole

6/17/09 at 9:03 a.m.

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Thank you Las Vegas Sun...this needs to be a national public issue. Please help educate the masses so the "right decisions" are made for a change. My father was a WW II vet, a Georgetown Law grad & public servant for 33 years. He often said the "right decisions" are the toughest and he was highly regarded for making right decisions. Now is the time for Maglev to be in the spotlight and deliver us into the 21st century. This is an easy one, so let's not blow it!
By tahoevalleylines

6/17/09 at 5:13 p.m.

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Agreed, Mag-Lev should be in the spotlight, along with the Concorde SST, Fusion electric power and the good 5 cent cigar. Reality and EIOER calculation poses problems for Mag-Lev.

Not in the spotlight, a horrendous oversight of the mainline US press, is honest discussion of the Peaking Oil threat. The International Energy Agency Nov. '08 and subsequent reports show greater than anticipated annual oilfield depletion rate, shelved/delayed new extraction and production projects. This translates to nearterm ceiling on motor fuel production even lower than last summer's, coup de gras to the economy as we knew it through the freeway age. Diesel/gas rationing is possible, seals the fate of Mag-Lev regardless of pages of well-wishing.

While we banter about vanities like flying trains and baling out private vehicles for everyone at puberty, let's be thankful, under the tweeting and bleating, steady effort to rehab standard railway networks going forward around the world. China & the EU Countries, South America and (what's this?) Mexico! are planning and building High Speed Railways. Mexico understands the ramifications of Peaking Oil, revealed by collapsing Canterell oilfield. See Canterell's obituary on the web.

Strategic planners think: "Second Dimension Surface Transport Logistics Platform", strategic lingo for railways flexible enough to run fast some places, slower other places. Like, for victuals & freight haul into warehouse complexes, etc. Mag-Lev, as a large player in the US, hit a wall, a disaster victim, on 911DAY. While the last Federal Executive was focused on shopping, other leaders in other places been working on the railroad. Even some US examples. See peakoil.net, ASPO articles 374 & 1037

Notable project in California is the North Coast Railway, rehab of the Northwestern Pacific. Peaking Oil savvy people can politely excuse themselves from the flying train clique, and study the rail line footprint of their respective locales. See spv.co.uk, for US Rail Map Atlas guides for the US rail network past & present. For updated methodologies including renewable generation linked to railways, see Christopher C. Swan's "ELECTRIC WATER" (New Society Press, 2007). Helpful CalTrans case Study for nomenclature is 1995 Reno/Tahoe US50/I-80 rail Corridor publication (unabridged), from CalTrans Director's office.

Now, all is not lost for the Mag-Lev contingent: Before the US calls in gold coins & bullion to cover dollar value for buying import oil, there are surely enough wealthy flying train proponents to invest some hoarded wealth to build flying trains. Airlines in particular, are obvious candidates to support Mag-Lev, just as many oil companies have gone into renewable energy component manufacture, BP & Shell being examples. Plenty here for everybody!

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