A bipartisan congressional group from California and Nevada has asked for federal funding to be fast-tracked for the high-speed train from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.
A new station will be built in Rancho Cucamonga and will connect to existing Metrolink service lines in San Bernardino and Los Angeles. Riders from SoCal area can arrive in Vegas in a little over two hours while traveling at speeds of nearly 200 mph.
The company behind the project, Brightline West, will spend over $10 billion to lay tracks along the Interstate 15 corridor in a public-private partnership.
The Nevada Department of Transportation is seeking $3.75 billion in federal funding from the Biden administration-backed federal infrastructure law.
All six of Nevada’s elected federal lawmakers and four House members from California sent the letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, asking for funds to be fast-tracked.
“It looks like everything is going forward as planned and the recent letter from both states supporting the use of federal funds for the project is great,” said Matthew Burris, Rancho Cucamonga Deputy City Manager. “A station here in Rancho Cucamonga is a big deal for the region.”
Construction is slated to begin later this year and is expected to be completed in 2026 or 2027.
Brightline West responded to KTLA’s request for comment saying:
“After more than a decade of working to find a pathway, Brightline West will be the first true high-speed rail system in America and will serve as the blueprint for how we can connect major city pairs that are too short to fly and too far to drive.”
The project aims to significantly reduce CO2 emissions by eliminating the need for three million cars to travel to Las Vegas. Company officials hope the project will remove 400,000 tons of CO2 from roads annually and relieve traffic on the 15 Freeway.
The project will also yield economic benefits — construction for the train will create nearly 35,000 jobs, and around 1,000 jobs will become permanent once the project is complete, officials said. Officials estimate the project will bring in over $10 billion in financial return.
Before reaching the Las Vegas Strip, the train will make stops in Rancho Cucamonga, Apple Valley, Hesperia and Victorville.
Brightline currently operates in Miami, Aventura, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and West Palm Beach in Florida.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.