CALPIRG Blog

Every commuter has had the misfortune of sitting in traffic. The flashing break lights and crawling cars can be almost hypnotic, and in those moments our minds drift to more pleasant thoughts. Like the flying cars from "The Jetsons," or a time machine like H.G. Wells wrote about; we all dream of ways to soar above the bumper-to-bumper daily grind.

On Nov. 4, California's voters will have the opportunity to make those dreams a reality, save the "flying car" part.

Proposition 1A, the "Safe, Reliable High Speed Passenger Train Bond Act," would secure funding to create one of the world's finest bullet train systems. The California high-speed rail network will span over 800 miles, including every major metropolitan area in California.

How will a high-speed train network reduce traffic? With drivers opting to relax on the 220-mphr bullet train instead of a their congested commutes, California's high-speed rail will eliminate as many as 70 million intercity highway passengers. That's a lot of cars that won't be on the road.

California high-speed rail will also get people where they are going fast. Imagine leaving Los Angeles and arriving in San Francisco two hours and 40 minutes later - without the hassle of airports. Or maybe leaving from Ontario and eating lunch in San Diego 60 minutes later?

Those long-standing vacation plans can go from fantasy to reality.

While travel will certainly be made faster and easier with high-speed rail, it isn't just about more convenient travel. The troubled state of our economy is on everyone's minds, and global warming further threatens our environment, economy and way of life. Fortunately, high-speed rail will benefit both the economy and environment.

The construction of California's high-speed rail system will employ 160,000 individuals and provide service to over 100 million passenger rides each year by 2030. And beyond being an efficient and profitable system in its own right, California high-speed rail is expected to save the state an estimated $40 billion dollars when compared to the costs of expanding California's highways and airports. For example, the cost of expanding I-10 from east San Gabriel Valley to Ontario International Airport, only 15 miles of highway, would be nearly $1.5 billion.

By using only a third as much energy per mile as a commercial aircraft and one-fifth the amount of energy per mile used by an average car, high-speed rail will significantly reduce California's dependence on oil and the pollution it creates. California high-speed rail will reduce California's oil dependence by 12.7 million barrels by 2030. High-speed rail would also reduce 12 billion pounds of global warming pollution per year by 2030, making it one of several key strategies for meeting California's commitments to reducing our global warming pollution.

California high-speed rail represents those daydreams and the cautious optimism forged in the face of a hard challenge. Every day wasted away in traffic is a reminder of the need to make a change in the status quo, especially considering how our current transportation infrastructure is inefficient, expensive, and environmentally irresponsible. Especially as our population grows to 50 million people by 2030, traffic congestion and harmful pollution will only get worse unless we build alternative ways to get around the state. High-speed rail may not be a flying car or a time machine, but it will certainly get you from place to place quickly.

And while our broken transportation system, overly reliant on cars, is what we know in California right now, high-speed rail will move more people for less money.

Kevin J. Powers, based in Sacramento, is a Field Organizer for the California Public Interest Research Group (CALPIRG). CALPIRG is a statewide public interest organization that stands up to powerful special interests on behalf of Californians' health and wellbeing.