Nevada going after $2.4 billion in rail funding rejected by Florida

Nevada is in the hunt for $2.4 billion in high-speed rail funding rejected by Florida Gov. Rick Scott.

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Wednesday said the Federal Railroad Administration has started evaluating more than 90 high-speed rail proposals totaling nearly $10 billion from 24 states, the District of Columbia and Amtrak.

Nevada’s proposal, to connect Las Vegas with Salt Lake City, Phoenix and Los Angeles as part of a western rail network, is being developed by the Las Vegas-based Western High Speed Rail Alliance.

Eric Glick, the Nevada Transportation Department’s rail program manager, said the state made the formal application on behalf of the association.

Scott made the controversial decision last month to reject funding to develop a train between Tampa and Orlando because he did not want to obligate the state to future maintenance costs. President Obama criticized Scott, saying the stance was not representative of most people in Florida.

“Today, we are another step closer to delivering an innovative, national transportation network that brings new jobs and economic opportunity to the American people,” LaHood said in a statement issued Wednesday. “Since I announced the availability of an additional $2.4 billion for high-speed rail projects, governors and members of Congress have been clamoring for the opportunity to participate. That’s because they know that high-speed rail will deliver tens of thousands of jobs, spur economic development across their communities and create additional options for their citizens as the country’s population grows.”

LaHood said there is no timetable for the redistribution of the money. He said a merit-driven process would be used to award the money to projects that can deliver public and economic benefits quickly.

A project’s ability to reduce energy consumption, improve the efficiency of a region’s overall transportation network and generate sustained economic activity along the corridor are among the selection criteria.

Nevada’s proposal will be competing with several states that are further along in their development of high-speed rail systems, including California, Wisconsin and New Mexico. Amtrak’s bid to further develop its Northeast Corridor routes will be considered, as well as proposals from Washington, D.C., New York and Massachusetts.

The funding request does not involve the DesertXpress high-speed rail plan to connect Las Vegas with Victorville, Calif., which is being developed privately. DesertXpress has a federal loan application pending to finance the $6 billion project.

The Western High Speed Rail Alliance has asked lawmakers to change current law that prevents qualified consortiums of metropolitan planning organizations, local transportation authorities and local governments to apply directly for federal intercity high-speed rail funding. Until that happens, the organization is working under the umbrella of the Nevada Transportation Department.

The alliance sent letters to key House and Senate committee leaders saying “that permitting MPOs and other entities with substantial transportation planning experience to apply directly for federal high speed rail funds would incentivize cooperation among regions, advance the intensity of high speed rail planning in the U.S., and provide for ‘last mile’ corridors within our jurisdictions that connect to other modes of transportation.”

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