(New York, NY) President Obama's expected announcement in Tampa tomorrow of proposed high-speed rail investments is a critical step toward implementing the long-term infrastructure vision our nation needs to pull itself out of the Great Recession and position itself for long-term competitive growth. America has gone from zero to sixty on high-speed rail in less than a year, joining virtually every other industrialized nation in making high-speed rail the backbone of a national infrastructure system.  We applaud the Obama Administration's vision in supporting this energy efficient, modern form of transportation and look forward to learning which corridors will be selected.

No matter which corridors receive the preliminary federal grants tomorrow, we offer the following principles for consideration as the program moves forward and expands:

The Administration should demonstrate early success by focusing on corridors with strong ridership demand and the lowest barriers to implementation. Our research indicates that the corridors with the greatest prospects for ridership demand are those that: 

The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation today announced a grant of $400,000 over three years to Regional Plan Association for wildlife conservation in the Northeast Megaregion as part of the America 2050 initiative. The funds will be applied to a new project to improve the integration of nature conservation with land use planning and infrastructure investments in 13 states across the Northeast, from Maine to Virginia. This marks the first effort to coordinate regional landscape conservation at the megaregion scale, mirroring similar large-scale efforts focused on transportation planning and advocacy that are underway in the Northeast Megaregion.

Read the news release

Defining the corridors in America that are most appropriate for high-speed rail service is critical to the long-term success of America's high-speed rail program. A new report by America 2050 offers one mechanism for assessing which potential high-speed rail corridors will have the greatest ridership demand based on population size, economic activity, transit connections, existing travel markets and urban spatial form and density.

The authors evaluate 27,000 city pairs in the nation to create an index of city pairs with the greatest demand for high-speed rail service. The paper provides a list of the top 50 city pairs, which are primarily concentrated in the Northeast, California, and the Midwest, and provides recommendations for phasing corridor development in the nation's megaregions.

Download the full report (PDF 3.2MB)

Download the Press Release.

View an Interactive Map of America 2050's proposed phasing plan for a national high speed rail network.

The Business Alliance for Northeast Mobility, a coalition of more than 30 chambers of commerce and civic organizations, urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Appropriations Chairman David Obey in letters today to increase funding in the economic stimulus bill for transit and rail - the backbone of the Northeast economy. Increased funding will put people to work making necessary rail improvements and ensure the long-term economic competitiveness of the Northeast Megaregion. 

A coalition of leading civic, business, environmental organizations and transportation officials convened by America 2050 released a statement today calling on the incoming Obama administration and the U.S. Congress to invest wisely in the proposed economic stimulus plan focused on infrastructure.

Responding to President-elect Obama's video address on December 6 announcing the "largest investment in infrastructure since the National Highway System," the group urged the President-elect to get this investment right with a five-step program: Fix, Phase, Green, Train and Count.

America 2050 Infrastructure Recommendations: Stimulus-Economic Recovery-Renewal

I.    FIX: To immediately create jobs and stimulate economic growth we need to "fix it first," that is, invest in the repair and maintenance of the country's deteriorated bridges, roads, public transit, passenger & freight rail, electric grids and other essential infrastructure components that have been neglected for decades. 

II.    PHASE: All the monies cannot be spent at once. While we must get a first group of "shovel ready" projects under construction as soon as possible, there are limits to the number of projects that can be initiated immediately. A series of phases should allow for the development of strategic projects, job training, and the building of capacity in construction, manufacturing, engineering and project management fields - all of which are essential to successfully carrying out the work.

III.    GREEN: Priority should be given to projects that foster energy independence, safeguard the environment, promote healthy & compact communities, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

IV.    TRAIN: Investment in America's infrastructure will create hundreds of thousands of skilled jobs, both immediately and for decades to come. To ensure that these large-scale projects are completed quickly and successfully, we need to invest in job training programs that will provide our workforce with the required skills. And, equally important, the jobs should be accessible to the people in the communities most deeply affected by the current economic crisis.

V.    COUNT: Funding must be set aside to measure and analyze the results of these federal investments and their outcomes: job creation, cost-effectiveness, greenhouse gas reductions, increased energy efficiency, etc.

ACCOUNTABILITY - NEW OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE

If America is to remain economically competitive, we cannot afford "business as usual" when it comes to infrastructure investments. Therefore, a new federal oversight committee is required to both streamline the investment process and also establish accountability.

We propose creating a National Recovery and Renewal Council, comprised of representatives from federal, state, and city agencies, as well as the private sector. The Council would report directly to the White House, charged with eliminating the red tape in implementing projects, as well as developing criteria and accountability measures that will guarantee that America meets its infrastructure goals, from energy independence to reduced carbon emissions to increased mobility.

Download the Statement here.