High-Speed Rail Plan May Move To Caltrain Tracks
SAN JOSE (CBS/AP) - California high-speed rail officials are set to vote this week on a proposal to launch the bullet trains through the Peninsula on fixed-up Caltrain tracks, rather than brand-new ones.
The proposal would cost $1.5 billion to electrify the two Caltrain tracks instead of $6.1 billion for the original plan of building four tracks between San Francisco and San Jose.
By sharing tracks, the bullet trains wouldn't be able to travel at their maximum speed, and officials would have to run fewer trains.
Officials said the state would need to eventually build the four tracks, but this alternative would allow high-speed rail to launch by the end of the decade.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority's board is expected to approve the proposal at its Thursday meeting.
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