President Barack Obama, along with Vice President Biden and Secretary LaHood, announced a new U.S. push today to transform travel in America, creating high-speed rail lines from city to city, reducing dependence on cars and planes and spurring economic development. The President released a strategic plan outlining his vision for high speed rail in America. The plan identifies $8 billion provided in the ARRA and $1 billion a year for five years requested in the federal budget as a down payment to jump-start a potential world-class passenger rail system and sets the direction of transportation policy for the future.
One of the potential high-speed corridors is the line from Detroit to Chicago – a trip that now takes over five hours and could with high speed rail take less than three hours! It would also stop in Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo and other cities along the way. The plan, the high-speed rail map and much more information is available online. Check it all out!