According to the Associated Press:
High-speed rail plans in California and the Midwest appear to be front runners in the race for $8 billion in stimulus cash based on federal criteria released Wednesday that favor projects with established revenue sources and multistate cooperation.
California voters last November approved nearly $10 billion in state bonds that could be combined with federal money to build 800 miles of high-speed track. Eight Midwest states have cooperated closely to promote a network, with Chicago as its hub, that would join 12 metropolitan areas within 400 miles.
Karen Rae, deputy administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration, stopped short of naming favorites, but she praised Midwestern states for their cooperation and pointed to California’s bond issue.
Improvements to tracks and equipment on many existing routes could enable Amtrak trains to reach top speeds of 110 miles per hour. The Midwest project foresees upgrades of three existing routes: Chicago-St. Louis; Chicago-Madison, Wis., via Milwaukee; and Chicago-Pontiac, Mich., through Detroit. The governors of the eight Midwest states Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio and Wisconsin wrote Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood in April appealing for money for the region, one of the hardest hit by the recession.