TRANSIT: Construction expected to start next year on private high-speed rail in Texas

June 16, 2016

The multi-billion dollar bullet train will connect Houston to Dallas

Texas Central Partners, LLC (Texas Central), a private company that is leading the bullet train project coming to Texas, is developing a new high-speed passenger rail system that will connect Houston and Dallas/Fort Worth. The bullet train will be the first high-speed rail the country has ever seen. Travel time on the train will be 90 minutes between Houston and Dallas with one stop in between in the Brazos Valley area. The high-speed rail will be beneficial to the nearly 50,000 Texans who travel back and forth between Houston and Dallas/Fort Worth multiple times a week.

Out of 97 city pairs studied across the nation, Houston/Dallas came out on top as the most feasible place for the high-speed rail project to be deployed. Texas Central believes the Houston/Dallas city pair is the best option for the train because there is growth in both cities and demand going in both directions. Also, the path is straight and relatively flat and far enough apart for the high-speed rail project.

There will be approximately 10,000 jobs per year for creating and building the high-speed rail project. Once the train is in full operation, there will be 1,000 new high-tech jobs.

There will be a $10 billion direct project investment through 2040 and $36 billion in cumulative project impact (including indirect investment) through 2040. The estimated tax revenue impact is $2.5 billion cumulative tax revenue to be paid by Texas Central.

The first full year of operations is projected to be in 2022. Texas Central does not want to speculate on ticket prices but will be offering competitive priced tickets.

Texas Central will be considering factors with pricing tickets dependent upon booking in advance, last minute, peak time, and off peak time. The Brazos area stop will be in between College Station and Huntsville. There might be possible student pricing for the 80,000 students that are in the Brazos Valley area which includes serving students attending Texas A&M, Blinn, and Sam Houston.

The train travels 200 miles per hour and is all 2 by 2 seating, which is similar to a first class airline experience. The bullet train will be the widest body passenger train in operation and will be Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant. Texas Central’s goal is to break ground on the high-speed rail project at the end of next year.

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