Now that a long-rumored high-speed rail project seems to be finally getting off the ground in Texas, another one is already in the works — and it would join the Lone Star State with neighboring Mexico.
Officials met in September to discuss the future of the idea, Newsweek reported. The rail line would run southwest in Texas from Austin to San Antonio and then on to the Texas border town of Laredo as well as Monterrey, Mexico — which is similar to a plan discussed in 2021. Austin would also be directly connected to Dallas-Fort Worth to the north.
SPECIAL PRESENTATION AUGUST 4h, 2021: "An official of Mexico's state-owned rail system will present how the Mexican government wants to partner with Texas and the U.S. federal government to create a passenger rail corridor between the two countries."https://t.co/NgtqpGn9Db pic.twitter.com/QvKhA64dXf
— Texas Rail Advocates (@TXRailAdvocate) July 31, 2021
In addition to an electric Houston-to-Dallas high-speed rail based on Japan's bullet train, there has been talk about a much shorter route between the capital and the Alamo City. These metropolises are among the most populous in the country. The former pair is joined by Interstate 45 and the latter by I-35. Both highways are notoriously congested.
The parties involved in the meeting included Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai and Travis County Judge Andy Brown of the Central Texas Passenger Rail Advisory Committee, Nuevo León Deputy Secretary of Economic Development Emmanuel Loo, and Saltillo Mayor-Elect Javier Díaz González.
"We need to come up with creative solutions for passengers who are looking for alternatives to using their vehicles to navigate the congested 80-mile stretch," Sakai said.
Though I-35 reaches the Mexian border state of Tamaulipas, the closest major city is Monterrey, in Nuevo León.
Last year, Nuevo León Gov. Samuel García asked Texas Department of Transportation Executive Director Marc D. Williams to access U.S. government funds to subsidize the project.
There are railroads throughout the state, though Newsweek noted Union Pacific's line between Austin and San Antonio presents a potential roadblock.
"The freight company has historically been reluctant to share its tracks with passenger rail without a separate freight bypass," it stated.
"... Texas lawmakers have shown resistance to allocating funds for high-speed rail, especially given past legislation that prevents state funds from being used for rail projects operated by private entities."
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It added that the state would have to pay just 20% of the cost under the Biden administration's Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which allocated $66 billion for rail projects.
Texas has another high-speed rail proposal on the table to connect Dallas with Fort Worth, which could be part of a nexus of trains that links five of the nation's 12 biggest cities.
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