Transit News

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom brought together leaders from business, labor, and the environment to call upon Californians to approve Proposition 1A on Tuesday’s ballot and build the high-speed train system for California. A vote for the high-speed train, they said, is a vote to ease congestion, curb pollution and provide the jobs our economy needs.

"Proposition 1A is right on time in California," said Speaker Pelosi. "This high speed rail project is a critical investment in our future. At a time when our economy is in crisis, investments like the High Speed Rail bond measure are even more critical. Californians are poised to lead the way by approving this project that will create more than 450,000 permanent jobs while helping to protect our environment and reduce our dependence on foreign oil."

Senator Feinstein said she was amazed by high-speed trains in Japan some 40 years ago and has long campaigned for their development here in California. “On my honeymoon with my husband in the early 1960s, we rode the bullet train from Tokyo to Osaka,” Senator Feinstein recalled. “We traveled 341 miles in roughly three hours – no lines, no hassles, train on time. I will never forget it, and I came to believe that this was possible for California. High-speed rail became part of my platform when I ran for governor in 1990, and I took the dream of a bullet train up and down the state on that campaign. I believe we now have the chance to finally make that dream a reality.”

Proposition 1A would authorize the sale of $9.95 billion in state bonds to build the high-speed rail system, which will be paid for through a partnership of federal, private and state funds. High-speed trains will:

• Ease freeway and airport congestion that costs Californians $20 billion per year in lost time and wasted fuel,

• Create 160,000 construction related jobs and 450,000 permanent jobs for our struggling economy,

• Curb greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming, and

• Reduce our dependence on oil by saving millions of barrels per year.

While Prop 1A will provide the critical state portion of the construction funds for the high-speed system, it will also deliver needed funding for existing regional transit facilities like BART, Caltrain and ACE. It is also expected to result in approximately 48,000 high value jobs in the Bay Area.

"The decisions we make now on how we prioritize state transportation funding will have a huge impact on California’s future. We must look forward by investing in a truly effective system of mass transit," said Mayor Gavin Newsom. "Prop 1A will connect California with high-speed trains – easing congestion, generating economic growth and creating jobs, saving energy and protecting California’s environment."

Judge Quentin L. Kopp, Chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority welcomed the support of Speaker Pelosi, Senator Feinstein and Mayor Newsom.

“More than a decade of in-depth research and engineering work with experts in the United States, Europe and Asia has gone into planning this system, learning what has worked best elsewhere and then adapting it for California,” he said. “Now, with the help of visionary leaders like these gathered here, we will hopefully see high-speed trains speeding along the rails for the people of California in the not too distant future.”

CALPIRG student leader Ramneek Saini spoke about the importance of high-speed rail for her generation, and for the rest of the nation.

"The importance of this vote on November 5th extends beyond California. Prop 1A is an opportunity for California to lead our country, just as we have on so many environmental issues, and build an example of high-speed rail for the 21stcentury," said Ms. Saini. "We have a plan, we have local champions, we have the leadership in Congress to help us, and now we just need  California voters to demonstrate our commitment for high-speed rail by passing Prop 1A."

“This may be our last best chance for high-speed rail for California,” Senator Feinstein added. “It can be done safely, in an environmentally friendly fashion, and it would create jobs and spur the economy. This is critical, because today, more than 1.4 million Californians are unemployed, and the state has the fourth-highest unemployment rate in the nation, at 7.7 percent. Now is the time. I urge voters to say yes to Proposition 1A.”