147-455: California High-Speed Rail ( CAHSR ) is a publicly funded high-speed rail system being developed in California by the California High-Speed Rail Authority . Phase 1, about 494 miles (795 km) long, is planned to run from San Francisco to Los Angeles and Anaheim via the Central Valley , and is partially funded and under construction. A proposed Phase 2 would extend the system north to Sacramento and south to San Diego , for
294-473: A flying wye which is intended to serve as the connection for a future Phase 2 extension to Sacramento. As part of Phase 1, Merced is planned to serve as a transfer point to the Amtrak San Joaquins and Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) trains continuing towards Stockton , Sacramento and other destinations. South of there, Madera through Bakersfield stations are located along the main line in
441-482: A naming rights deal announced on July 7, 2017, the transit center was given the official name of Salesforce Transit Center; the adjoined City Park took the official name Salesforce Park. The first phase of the new Transit Center was originally to be completed by the end of 2017. This was delayed to March 2018 in July 2017, and to June 2018 that December. On December 26, 2017, Muni began operating route 5 buses into
588-577: A "blended" approach to construction, which would involve high-speed trains sharing track with Amtrak and local commuter trains ( Caltrain in the Bay Area and Metrolink in Southern California) in these sections. This approach was adopted to reduce costs and mitigate the impact of construction on surrounding communities, but also limits train speed in these sections to a maximum of 110 miles per hour (180 km/h). Between Gilroy and Burbank,
735-477: A ballot measure, Proposition 1A , which authorized $ 9 billion in bonds to begin the planning and construction of high-speed rail and a further $ 950 million to upgrade commuter rail systems in Northern and Southern California that would connect with the high-speed rail system. Proposition 1A, which passed with about 53 percent of the vote, set several requirements for the high-speed rail system, including that
882-683: A blackout. There are plans for a heavy maintenance facility, serving as the location for major train inspections and repairs, in the Central Valley. It will also serve to receive and test high-speed trainsets along the IOS track currently being constructed. Also planned along the Phase 1 route are three light maintenance facilities for routine train inspections and cleaning, with locations in the Bay Area, Central Valley and greater Los Angeles, as well as four maintenance of way facilities spaced throughout
1029-408: A carbody design that would reduce wind resistance at high speeds. A long series of tests was carried. In 1905, St. Louis Car Company built a railcar for the traction magnate Henry E. Huntington , capable of speeds approaching 160 km/h (100 mph). Once it ran 32 km (20 mi) between Los Angeles and Long Beach in 15 minutes, an average speed of 130 km/h (80 mph). However, it
1176-527: A complete funding commitment. Despite these issues, public opinion polls have indicated more overall support than opposition for the project. High-speed rail in California was first proposed in 1979 by Governor Jerry Brown . In 1982 Brown signed a bill authorizing $ 1.25 billion in bonds for a high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and San Diego. This law failed due to concerns over its economic viability and environmental impact, and Caltrans ' objection to
1323-611: A design contract for the Merced, Fresno, Kings/Tulare and Bakersfield stations. Planning for the Madera station is occurring under a separate agreement with the San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority . The construction contract for track and electrical power systems on the IOS is expected in 2024-2025. As of February 2024, Construction Packages 1–3 were more than 70 percent complete and Construction Package 4
1470-578: A high-speed railway network in Russian gauge . There are no narrow gauge high-speed railways. Countries whose legacy network is entirely or mostly of a different gauge than 1435mm – including Japan and Spain – have however often opted to build their high speed lines to standard gauge instead of the legacy railway gauge. High-speed rail is the fastest and most efficient ground-based method of commercial transportation. However, due to requirements for large track curves, gentle gradients and grade separated track
1617-440: A length no longer than about 680 feet (210 m). Some requirements reflect American legislation or standards corresponding to the local environment, including full ADA -compliance, Tier III FRA safety standards, earthquake safety systems for safe stopping and exiting, and a floor height of 50.5 in (128 cm) above the rails to enable level boarding. The Authority intends to procure a first batch of six trainsets for deployment on
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#17327723212621764-546: A new top speed for a regular service, with a top speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). This train was a streamlined multi-powered unit, albeit diesel, and used Jakobs bogies . Following the success of the Hamburg line, the steam-powered Henschel-Wegmann Train was developed and introduced in June 1936 for service from Berlin to Dresden , with a regular top speed of 160 km/h (99 mph). Incidentally no train service since
1911-526: A passenger waiting area, including ticket sales and retail amenities. The waiting area would be connected via tunnel to the BART/Muni Metro Embarcadero Station . As of May 2024 , the extension is projected to cost $ 8.25 billion and start construction in 2025 with a completion date in 2032. A federal funding pledge covers $ 3.4 billion of the cost, provided that local officials identify matching funds. The project would include
2058-481: A second, parallel beam was also found to be cracked, causing the transit center and Fremont Street to remain closed at least through the end of the following week. On October 2, 2018, it was reported that the Transit Center would remain closed at least through the end of the month. Fremont Street reopened on October 15. A Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) peer review panel investigated whether
2205-555: A some other interurban rail cars reached about 145 km/h (90 mph) in commercial traffic. The Red Devils weighed only 22 tons though they could seat 44 passengers. Extensive wind tunnel research – the first in the railway industry – was done before J. G. Brill in 1931 built the Bullet cars for Philadelphia and Western Railroad (P&W). They were capable of running at 148 km/h (92 mph). Some of them were almost 60 years in service. P&W's Norristown High Speed Line
2352-620: A top speed of 220 mph (350 km/h), CAHSR trains running along this section would be the fastest in the Americas. From January 2015 to December 2023, a total of $ 11.2 billion had been spent on the IOS – which has 119 miles (192 km) under active construction – and on upgrades to existing rail lines in the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Los Angeles, where Phase 1 is planned to share tracks with conventional passenger trains. Regulatory clearance has been obtained for
2499-427: A total of 776 miles (1,249 km). The project was authorized by a 2008 statewide ballot to connect the state's major urban areas and reduce intercity travel times. Phase 1 targets a nonstop travel time of 2 hours and 40 minutes from San Francisco to Los Angeles, compared to about nine hours on the existing Amtrak San Joaquins . Construction of Phase 1 began in the Central Valley in 2015. Due to limited funding,
2646-569: A world record for narrow gauge trains at 145 km/h (90 mph), giving the Odakyu engineers confidence they could safely and reliably build even faster trains at standard gauge. Conventional Japanese railways up until that point had largely been built in the 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ) Cape gauge , however widening the tracks to standard gauge ( 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in )) would make very high-speed rail much simpler due to improved stability of
2793-476: Is a set of unique features, not merely a train travelling above a particular speed. Many conventionally hauled trains are able to reach 200 km/h (124 mph) in commercial service but are not considered to be high-speed trains. These include the French SNCF Intercités and German DB IC . The criterion of 200 km/h (124 mph) is selected for several reasons; above this speed,
2940-459: Is a type of rail transport network utilizing trains that run significantly faster than those of traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialized rolling stock and dedicated tracks . While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines built to handle speeds above 250 km/h (155 mph) or upgraded lines in excess of 200 km/h (125 mph) are widely considered to be high-speed. The first high-speed rail system,
3087-722: Is being considered. The existing 4th and King Caltrain station in San Francisco is expected to be the northern terminus of Phase 1 until the future completion of the Downtown Rail Extension (now known as The Portal ) to the Salesforce Transit Center . From San Francisco, the planned route runs south to Gilroy before crossing the Diablo Range eastward over Pacheco Pass into the Central Valley. The route branches north to Merced via
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#17327723212623234-425: Is completed, Caltrain riders would no longer need to transfer to Muni to reach the downtown financial district. The heavy rail portion of the terminal would be designed to accommodate the planned high speed rail from Los Angeles , which shares the right-of-way (Peninsula Corridor) with Caltrain between San Francisco and San Jose. BART has expressed interest in having their proposed Second Transbay Tube connect to
3381-485: Is consulting the Authority in matters leading up to passenger operations, such as ridership forecasts, service scheduling, and operations cost forecasting. Ridership estimates for 2040 based on a 2023 forecast would total about 12.2 million riders annually for a Silicon Valley to Bakersfield service. For the entire Phase 1 system it projected 28.4 million riders annually, more than twice the number of annual passengers on
3528-450: Is still early in the planning stages, and would not be constructed until after the completion of Phase 1. Proposition 1A sets an explicit requirement for a sustained operating speed of at least 200 miles per hour (320 km/h). The Authority plans to operate trains at 220 miles per hour (350 km/h); with a conventional 10% buffer for testing, this requires a top speed of at least 242 mph (389 km/h). To minimize project risks,
3675-539: Is still in use, almost 110 years after P&W in 1907 opened their double-track Upper Darby–Strafford line without a single grade crossing with roads or other railways. The entire line was governed by an absolute block signal system. On 15 May 1933, the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft company introduced the diesel-powered " Fliegender Hamburger " in regular service between Hamburg and Berlin (286 km or 178 mi), thereby achieving
3822-617: Is the busiest domestic air route in the US, averaging 132 scheduled flights daily. The high-speed rail system may relieve housing pressure in major urban areas, especially the Bay Area, by providing access to cheaper housing in the Central Valley, which would be particularly beneficial for business travelers and hybrid remote workers who only commute a few times a week. While the rail project may incentivize denser housing and job growth around stations, with cities such as Fresno and Bakersfield planning for major real estate investments in their downtowns,
3969-619: Is the crossing of the San Andreas Fault and several parallel, smaller fault zones, where a large earthquake could significantly deform the tracks. To compensate for this, the rail beds and tunnel diameters will be constructed wider at fault crossings to allow for any needed track realignment in the future. The tracks will cross the San Andreas Fault itself above ground. In total, the southern extension from Bakersfield to Los Angeles may require 36 miles of tunnels. In 2018,
4116-571: The Chicago-New York Electric Air Line Railroad project to reduce the running time between the two big cities to ten hours by using electric 160 km/h (99 mph) locomotives. After seven years of effort, however, less than 50 km (31 mi) of arrow-straight track was finished. A part of the line is still used as one of the last interurbans in the US. In the US, some of the interurbans (i.e. trams or streetcars which run from city to city) of
4263-499: The San Joaquins takes about nine hours, a bus transfer is required for part of the route. High-speed rail is intended to be competitive with air travel; while the actual station-to-station time would be slower than flying, reduced waiting and boarding times and fewer security checks would make total travel times competitive, with other potential benefits including passenger comfort and greater reliability. San Francisco–Los Angeles
4410-553: The 0 Series Shinkansen , built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries – in English often called "Bullet Trains", after the original Japanese name Dangan Ressha ( 弾丸列車 ) – outclassed the earlier fast trains in commercial service. They traversed the 515 km (320 mi) distance in 3 hours 10 minutes, reaching a top speed of 210 km/h (130 mph) and sustaining an average speed of 162.8 km/h (101.2 mph) with stops at Nagoya and Kyoto. Speed
4557-681: The Aérotrain , a French hovercraft monorail train prototype, reached 200 km/h (120 mph) within days of operation. After the successful introduction of the Japanese Shinkansen in 1964, at 210 km/h (130 mph), the German demonstrations up to 200 km/h (120 mph) in 1965, and the proof-of-concept jet-powered Aérotrain , SNCF ran its fastest trains at 160 km/h (99 mph). In 1966, French Infrastructure Minister Edgard Pisani consulted engineers and gave
California High-Speed Rail - Misplaced Pages Continue
4704-662: The Buy America Act . Both qualified bidders have local manufacturing capacities: Alstom in Hornell, New York and Siemens Mobility in Horseheads, New York . The Authority was granted a Buy America-waiver by the FRA for the two prototype trainsets, allowing those to be manufactured abroad. Proposition 1A specifies up to 24 stations to be constructed on the full network. Thirteen stations are planned as part of Phase 1, of which
4851-464: The Caltrain commuter rail line from its current location at Fourth and King Streets; the downtown Caltrain extension is projected to alleviate roadway traffic and Caltrain rider delays, resulting in an estimated $ 20 million savings per year. The Caltrain extension depends on the electrification of its rolling stock, as the current diesel engines are not appropriate for tunnel service. When this project
4998-674: The Central Valley to Los Angeles ; Phase 2 is an extension of that system both to the north from Merced to Sacramento and to the south from Los Angeles via the Inland Empire to San Diego . As of 2024, the High-Speed Rail Authority is targeting completion of the "Initial Operating Segment" (IOS), a 171-mile (275 km)-Central Valley section within the Phase 1 route, with 119 miles (192 km) under active construction. It has not obtained full funding for
5145-407: The Inland Empire and inland parts of San Diego County, with stops at Ontario International Airport and Escondido . One or more additional stations may be built, in either El Monte , West Covina , Pomona , San Bernardino , Corona , March ARB , or Murrieta . If the entire Phase 2 is completed, it would bring the total length of the high-speed rail system to 776 miles (1,249 km). Phase 2
5292-590: The Marienfelde – Zossen line during 1902 and 1903 (see Experimental three-phase railcar ). On 23 October 1903, the S&;H-equipped railcar achieved a speed of 206.7 km/h (128.4 mph) and on 27 October the AEG-equipped railcar achieved 210.2 km/h (130.6 mph). These trains demonstrated the feasibility of electric high-speed rail; however, regularly scheduled electric high-speed rail travel
5439-647: The Morning Hiawatha service, hauled at 160 km/h (99 mph) by steam locomotives. In 1939, the largest railroad of the world, the Pennsylvania Railroad introduced a duplex steam engine Class S1 , which was designed to be capable of hauling 1200 tons passenger trains at 161 km/h (100 mph). The S1 engine was assigned to power the popular all-coach overnight premier train the Trail Blazer between New York and Chicago since
5586-717: The Northeast Corridor Amtrak services (12.1 million) in 2023. Brightline West (formerly Desert Xpress and XpressWest) is a project that has been planning to build a high-speed rail line from Las Vegas, Nevada to Victorville, California – about 90 miles (140 km) northeast of Los Angeles – since 2007. The line is intended to cross the Mojave Desert using the I-15 freeway median for most of its length. The separate High Desert Corridor rail line has been proposed between Victorville to Palmdale, extending
5733-570: The Pacheco Pass ; Oakland –San Jose; and Merced /Stockton–Oakland/San Francisco via the Altamont Pass ). The Northern California sections were to be connected to Southern California on a route serving Fresno, Bakersfield , and Palmdale before reaching Los Angeles. In Southern California, two corridors were specified – Los Angeles– Riverside –San Diego, and Los Angeles–Anaheim– Irvine . The only specific requirement set by Proposition 1A
5880-520: The Presidio Go Shuttle . As of January 2020 , Amtrak Thruway buses also use a surface stop outside the terminal — despite previous plans to use the bus deck — due to disagreements between the TJPA and other agencies about costs. The Transbay Transit Center project was designed to include a tunnel (the Downtown Rail Extension, now known as The Portal ) extending the terminus of
6027-545: The Prussian state railway joined with ten electrical and engineering firms and electrified 72 km (45 mi) of military owned railway between Marienfelde and Zossen . The line used three-phase current at 10 kilovolts and 45 Hz . The Van der Zypen & Charlier company of Deutz, Cologne built two railcars, one fitted with electrical equipment from Siemens-Halske , the second with equipment from Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft (AEG), that were tested on
California High-Speed Rail - Misplaced Pages Continue
6174-729: The Tōkaidō Shinkansen , began operations in Honshu , Japan, in 1964. Due to the streamlined spitzer -shaped nose cone of the trains , the system also became known by its English nickname bullet train . Japan's example was followed by several European countries, initially in Italy with the Direttissima line, followed shortly thereafter by France , Germany , and Spain . Today, much of Europe has an extensive network with numerous international connections. More recent construction since
6321-532: The United Kingdom , the United States , and Uzbekistan . Only in continental Europe and Asia does high-speed rail cross international borders. High-speed trains mostly operate on standard gauge tracks of continuously welded rail on grade-separated rights of way with large radii . However, certain regions with wider legacy railways , including Russia and Uzbekistan, have sought to develop
6468-474: The World Bank , whilst supporting the project, considered the design of the equipment as unproven for that speed, and set the maximum speed to 210 km/h (130 mph). After initial feasibility tests, the plan was fast-tracked and construction of the first section of the line started on 20 April 1959. In 1963, on the new track, test runs hit a top speed of 256 km/h (159 mph). Five years after
6615-522: The environmental impact statements for 463 miles (745 km) of the 494-mile (795 km) route had been certified, which specifies the alignment from San Francisco to Los Angeles and clears it for detailed engineering design and construction. The remaining segment to be certified is the Los Angeles–Anaheim section. The Merced to San Jose section would cross the Pacheco Pass roughly along
6762-418: The railroad grade , viaducts, road overpasses and underpasses — including for private citizens — and other structures along the route, but not the track itself. In August 2022, the Authority approved design contracts for the remaining 52 miles (84 km) of the IOS connecting Madera to Merced and Shafter to Bakersfield, with construction contracts expected in 2025-2026. In October 2022, the Authority approved
6909-634: The $ 2 billion already spent, and is currently unfunded. Based on the policies established by the FTA encouraging the inclusion of public art in transportation facilities, the TJPA committed $ 4.75 million to fund the creation of public artwork for the Program. Working with the San Francisco Arts Commission, the TJPA oversees the planning and development of the public art program. Initially there were five artists included in
7056-542: The 100,000 expected daily rail passengers, the bus-only terminal was expected to lose as much as $ 20 million annually. Daily AC Transit ridership to/from Transbay Transit Center was 17,436 in February 2020, but just 3,895 in April 2023. The transit center was abruptly ordered closed on September 25, 2018—six weeks after opening and during Salesforce's annual Dreamforce conference—following the discovery by workers installing
7203-684: The 1939 Transbay Terminal , voters approved funds for the new Transbay Transit Center in 1999. Construction on the first phase, the bus terminal, began in 2010. Limited Muni bus service began in December 2017, and full service from AC Transit and other regional and intercity bus operators began in August 2018. Full funding has not yet been secured for the second phase of construction, the Downtown Rail Extension (now known as The Portal ), which hopes to add an underground terminal station for Caltrain and California High-Speed Rail . The transit center
7350-573: The 21st century has led to China taking a leading role in high-speed rail. As of 2023 , China's HSR network accounted for over two-thirds of the world's total. In addition to these, many other countries have developed high-speed rail infrastructure to connect major cities, including: Austria , Belgium , Denmark , Finland , Greece , Indonesia , Morocco , the Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Portugal , Russia , Saudi Arabia , Serbia , South Korea , Sweden , Switzerland , Taiwan , Turkey ,
7497-474: The 5.4-acre (2.2 ha) rooftop park. The bus deck has a dedicated highway ramp (consisting, in part, of a cable-stayed bridge ) to the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and an off-site bus storage facility under the western Bay Bridge approach. In order to allow buses with doors on the right to serve the central (island) platform on the bus deck, buses circulate clockwise (i.e., driving on
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#17327723212627644-565: The Amtrak San Joaquins for the Central Valley, Sacramento, and the Bay Area. When the IOS goes into operation, the Amtrak San Joaquins segment currently overlapping with the IOS (Merced to Bakersfield) will be discontinued and replaced by CAHSR service. Passengers will be able to transfer at the future Merced Multi-Modal Transit Station , the northern terminus of the IOS. The remaining service will be expanded under
7791-411: The Authority changed the IOS to a northern segment between San Jose and Bakersfield, the "Silicon Valley to Central Valley line". As of 2023, the IOS had been determined as the current definition of 171 miles (275 km) from Merced to Bakersfield in the Central Valley, with 119 miles (192 km) under active construction. If additional funding becomes available, the Authority still intends to construct
7938-418: The Authority estimated that the tunneling may cost between $ 26 and $ 45 billion. The high-speed rail system is planned to run entirely on renewable energy. Due to the large energy demand of high-speed trains, the system is being planned to generate much of its own power. Solar arrays and battery backup systems are to be installed at traction power substations along the route; however, they will still be tied into
8085-478: The Authority plans to acquire electric multiple units (EMUs) of service-proven design, for which there are no domestic rolling stock manufacturers. Many specifications are hence similar to those of trainsets being operated in Europe, such as: a lifespan of at least 30 years, the ability to operate two coupled trainsets as a single consist ("double heading"), a capacity of at least 450 seats and eight bicycle spots, and
8232-399: The California power grid, allowing them to share energy as needed. The Authority plans to install solar panels capable of producing 44 megawatts , and batteries to store 124 megawatt hours . The on-site generation of solar power is estimated to cut future electricity costs by 75 percent compared to purchasing it from the state grid, and will keep the system operational if the grid suffers
8379-553: The Central Valley. From Bakersfield, the high-speed rail route crosses the Tehachapi Mountains via Tehachapi Pass to Palmdale in the Mojave Desert . It then tunnels under the San Gabriel Mountains to reach Los Angeles and Anaheim. In the urbanized areas from San Francisco to Gilroy and from Burbank to Anaheim, the Phase 1 route follows existing railroad right-of-ways. In 2012, the Authority adopted
8526-496: The Corridor is proposed to operate as passenger rail. The plans to activate the rail line are currently unfunded. The 2008 California voter approval required the project to be financed with matching funds from other sources, including private and federal. The government of Japan offered long-term, low-interest financing if California employed Shinkansen bullet-train technology. High-speed rail High-speed rail ( HSR )
8673-642: The French National Railway started to receive their new powerful CC 7100 electric locomotives, and began to study and evaluate running at higher speeds. In 1954, the CC 7121 hauling a full train achieved a record 243 km/h (151 mph) during a test on standard track. The next year, two specially tuned electric locomotives, the CC 7107 and the prototype BB 9004, broke previous speed records, reaching respectively 320 km/h (200 mph) and 331 km/h (206 mph), again on standard track. For
8820-565: The French National Railways twelve months to raise speeds to 200 km/h (120 mph). The classic line Paris– Toulouse was chosen, and fitted, to support 200 km/h (120 mph) rather than 140 km/h (87 mph). Some improvements were set, notably the signals system, development of on board "in-cab" signalling system, and curve revision. The next year, in May 1967, a regular service at 200 km/h (120 mph)
8967-434: The IOS has changed several times in the project's history. In 2012 it was planned to run from Merced through Bakersfield to Burbank (just north of Los Angeles), a distance of about 300 miles (480 km). This would have closed a major gap in California intercity rail services, as the existing San Joaquins terminates at Bakersfield and does not continue on to Los Angeles. In 2016, due to changes in funding and financing plans,
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#17327723212629114-780: The IOS, and no high-speed rail segments outside the IOS have so far been funded. The funding situation is discussed in § Finances and setbacks . Phase 1 of the planned route, about 494 miles (795 km) long, runs from the Salesforce Transit Center in San Francisco to the Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center in Anaheim, with intermediate stops planned for Millbrae , San Jose , Gilroy , Merced , Madera , Fresno , Kings/Tulare (Hanford) , Bakersfield , Palmdale , Burbank and Los Angeles . An additional station between Los Angeles and Anaheim, at Norwalk or Fullerton ,
9261-569: The Initial Operating Segment (IOS) as well as a "driving simulator". Included will be services for maintenance for 30 years, a mid-life overhaul, and a variety of support services. In January 2024, the Authority chose Alstom and Siemens Mobility as qualified train suppliers. The Authority released a request for proposals (RFP) in mid-April 2024, with a procurement contract planned for late 2024. The chosen contractor will have to deliver two prototype trainsets for testing by
9408-773: The Las Vegas line to connect with CAHSR and Metrolink. This project is managed by the High Desert Corridor Joint Powers Agency (HDC JPA). The High Desert Corridor is in a preliminary planning and project development stage with construction currently being unfunded. The HDC JPA signed two labor agreements in July 2024. After Brightline took over the project in 2018, a separate extension was proposed to run from Victorville and terminate in Rancho Cucamonga, California , where it would connect with Metrolink but not CAHSR. In December 2023,
9555-577: The San Francisco Chronicle, it is "frequently out of order", but the park level is also accessible by stairs, escalators and elevator. The second phase of the project, constructed as part of the Downtown Rail Extension (now known as The Portal ), will add a two-level underground train station to be served by Caltrain and California High-Speed Rail . The platform area will have three island platforms serving six tracks. A mezzanine with ticketing and waiting areas will be located above
9702-460: The TJPA announced that it expected repairs to be completed in June 2019, but cautioned that the center would not reopen until the MTC peer review panel published its final report. In April 2019, it was determined that the cracks were caused when crews welding the beams together skipped a crucial step—mandated by the building code—that led to tiny micro-cracks forming. Multiple inspections failed to notice
9849-439: The TJPA. The TJPA announced on May 10 that repairs were complete. The rooftop park reopened on July 1, 2019. Muni and Golden Gate Transit buses resumed using the surface bus plaza on July 13, and the full facility reopened on August 11. The park has been criticized for allowing a commercial company to own the naming rights, as well as not having enough bike lanes connecting to other major transit routes. Wired criticized
9996-491: The Temporary Transbay Terminal three days later on August 15, leaving Amtrak Thruway as the sole remaining bus operator using the Temporary Transbay Terminal. Amtrak buses began using a street-level stop at Salesforce Plaza on Mission Street near Fremont Street on October 28, 2019. That stop was temporarily relocated along Mission Street to near 2nd Street on November 9, 2020. Without the revenue from
10143-557: The Transit Center was anticipated to be complete by late 2016, with bus operations expected to commence by August 2017. Demolition of the former Transbay Terminal and ramps was completed in September 2011. Amtrak Thruway bus service, which connects to Amtrak trains at Emeryville station , moved from the Ferry Station Post Office Building to the Temporary Transbay Terminal on March 2, 2015. Under
10290-606: The US, 160 km/h (99 mph) in Germany and 125 mph (201 km/h) in Britain. Above those speeds positive train control or the European Train Control System becomes necessary or legally mandatory. National domestic standards may vary from the international ones. Railways were the first form of rapid land transportation and had an effective monopoly on long-distance passenger traffic until
10437-417: The Valley Rail project, providing passengers with continuing transportation north and west to the Bay Area and north towards/to Sacramento. Valley Rail is currently in implementation, and has an estimated completion date in 2030. The ACEforward project is further proposed to improve service in the ACE corridor. The Cross Valley Corridor (CVC) is a proposed transit line connecting Naval Air Station Lemoore and
10584-497: The administrative joint powers authority for the project. The final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was published in 2004. The project was divided into two phases, with Phase 1 being demolition of the original terminal and construction of the Transbay Transit Center, and Phase 2 being the Downtown Rail Extension (now known as The Portal ). In 2006, developers agreed to a new Mello-Roos tax district in
10731-455: The area surrounding the Transbay Transit Center in order for permits for higher buildings to move forward. San Francisco set the tax rate in 2012 at 0.55 percent of assessed value; due to rising real estate prices, however, the 2014 tax burden had risen by nearly 50% compared to the 2012 tax burden, and the developers threatened to pull their building plans entirely or sue the city. The lawsuits never materialized, however. On September 20, 2007,
10878-570: The award of $ 3 billion in federal funding via the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act , concurrent with the $ 3.1 billion funding for CAHSR, enabled the project to advance. Construction of the Las Vegas to Rancho Cucamonga route began in 2024 and is projected to take approximately four years to construct. Valley Rail is a program to jointly improve rail service on the Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) and
11025-579: The beginning of the construction work, in October 1964, just in time for the Olympic Games , the first modern high-speed rail, the Tōkaidō Shinkansen , was opened between the two cities; a 510 km (320 mi) line between Tokyo and Ōsaka. As a result of its speeds, the Shinkansen earned international publicity and praise, and it was dubbed the "bullet train." The first Shinkansen trains,
11172-443: The cancelation of this express train in 1939 has traveled between the two cities in a faster time as of 2018 . In August 2019, the travel time between Dresden-Neustadt and Berlin-Südkreuz was 102 minutes. See Berlin–Dresden railway . Further development allowed the usage of these "Fliegenden Züge" (flying trains) on a rail network across Germany. The "Diesel-Schnelltriebwagen-Netz" (diesel high-speed-vehicle network) had been in
11319-478: The cities Hanford , Visalia , and Porterville with the future Kings-Tulare high-speed rail station . Its route runs east–west for a total of about 80-mile (130 km), perpendicular to the high-speed rail alignment and mostly along existing rail tracks. During a first phase of up to ten years within opening of the IOS, the CVC will be implemented as a coordinated bus service by local transit agencies. In later phases,
11466-562: The construction of high-speed rail is more costly than conventional rail and therefore does not always present an economical advantage over conventional speed rail. Multiple definitions for high-speed rail are in use worldwide. The European Union Directive 96/48/EC, Annex 1 (see also Trans-European high-speed rail network ) defines high-speed rail in terms of: The International Union of Railways (UIC) identifies three categories of high-speed rail: A third definition of high-speed and very high-speed rail requires simultaneous fulfilment of
11613-436: The cracks may have been caused by flaws that developed in the steel during fabrication, plus by stress concentrations arising from weld access holes or weld termination holes cut into the beams, that were added after the shop designs were submitted for approval. Weld access holes have more stringent building code requirements than weld termination holes, and it was not clear which type of holes were added. In February 2019,
11760-464: The curve radius should be quadrupled; the same was true for the acceleration and braking distances. In 1891 engineer Károly Zipernowsky proposed a high-speed line from Vienna to Budapest for electric railcars at 250 km/h (160 mph). In 1893 Wellington Adams proposed an air-line from Chicago to St. Louis of 252 miles (406 km), at a speed of only 160 km/h (99 mph). Alexander C. Miller had greater ambitions. In 1906, he launched
11907-603: The deputy director Marcel Tessier at the DETE ( SNCF Electric traction study department). JNR engineers returned to Japan with a number of ideas and technologies they would use on their future trains, including alternating current for rail traction, and international standard gauge. In 1957, the engineers at the private Odakyu Electric Railway in Greater Tokyo Area launched the Odakyu 3000 series SE EMU. This EMU set
12054-521: The design proposed by César Pelli of Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects was chosen for both the Transit Center and the Transbay Tower, now known as Salesforce Tower . The first phase of construction consisted of the aboveground bus terminal, including retail spaces and the rooftop park, plus the concrete shell of the underground rail levels. It cost $ 2.4 billion, of which $ 500 million was for the underground shell. On August 7, 2010, all bus service
12201-508: The development of the motor car and airliners in the early-mid 20th century. Speed had always been an important factor for railroads and they constantly tried to achieve higher speeds and decrease journey times. Rail transportation in the late 19th century was not much slower than non-high-speed trains today, and many railroads regularly operated relatively fast express trains which averaged speeds of around 100 km/h (62 mph). High-speed rail development began in Germany in 1899 when
12348-595: The early 20th century were very high-speed for their time (also Europe had and still does have some interurbans). Several high-speed rail technologies have their origin in the interurban field. In 1903 – 30 years before the conventional railways started to streamline their trains – the officials of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition organised the Electric Railway Test Commission to conduct a series of tests to develop
12495-424: The end of 2028, and four further trainsets by 2030 for revenue service on the IOS. There is also an option for a further 15 trainsets. In 2023, it was projected that for the full Phase 1 system, 66 trainsets would be needed. Because the trainset purchase is funded by an FRA grant program authorized under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act , manufacturing and sourcing for the trainsets fall under provisions of
12642-421: The existing San Joaquins route through the Central Valley. In the south, the system would be extended 167 miles (269 km) from Los Angeles to San Diego . Instead of continuing south from Anaheim, it would split off from the Phase 1 route at Los Angeles Union Station and travel east along I-10 before turning south, following an inland route along I-15 or I-215 . This would enable high-speed trains to serve
12789-427: The existing Caltrain commuter rail corridor from San Francisco to San Jose. Work began in 2017 and was completed in September 2024. The corridor from San Jose to Gilroy will also require electrification; as of February 2024, the Authority was still in negotiations with Union Pacific Railroad over proposed alterations to the tracks. Several grade separations and passing tracks have been completed or are planned along
12936-399: The final ceiling panels of a “major crack ” in a steel beam supporting the bus deck above Fremont Street. Beale, Fremont, and First Streets were closed beneath and adjacent to the transit center; Beale and First reopened soon after. The Temporary Transbay Terminal, which had been in use during construction of the new transit center, was hastily reopened to serve riders. The following day,
13083-438: The first time, 300 km/h (185 mph) was surpassed, allowing the idea of higher-speed services to be developed and further engineering studies commenced. Especially, during the 1955 records, a dangerous hunting oscillation , the swaying of the bogies which leads to dynamic instability and potential derailment was discovered. This problem was solved by yaw dampers which enabled safe running at high speeds today. Research
13230-617: The five on the IOS are (partially) funded. The table below lists all Phase 1 stations and their transfer connections: Phase 1 is planned to include several types of service – nonstop trains traveling directly between San Francisco and Los Angeles; express and limited trains making a few intermediate stops at major cities; and local trains making all stops. Proposition 1A requires that the system must be designed for operating headways of five minutes or less (12 trains per hour), and that intermediate stations must be designed so nonstop trains can bypass them without slowing down. In addition, it indicates
13377-510: The following nonstop travel times: vertical padding Initial Operating Segment (IOS) Silicon Valley–Central Valley Segment padding-padding-padding-padding In October 2017, the California High-Speed Rail Authority announced that DB E.C.O. North America, a subsidiary of German national rail operator Deutsche Bahn (DB), had been chosen as the early train operator. Its main service
13524-575: The following two conditions: The UIC prefers to use "definitions" (plural) because they consider that there is no single standard definition of high-speed rail, nor even standard usage of the terms ("high speed", or "very high speed"). They make use of the European EC Directive 96/48, stating that high speed is a combination of all the elements which constitute the system: infrastructure, rolling stock and operating conditions. The International Union of Railways states that high-speed rail
13671-563: The full route connecting San Francisco and Los Angeles, which includes the IOS. However, the Authority has not yet received sufficient funding to construct the segments from the IOS westwards to the Bay Area or southwards to Los Angeles, both of which would require tunneling through major mountain passes. As of 2024, the entirety of Phase 1 was projected to cost $ 106.2 billion. Supporters of the project state that it would alleviate air traffic and highway congestion, reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and provide economic benefits by linking
13818-400: The ground level of the terminal in order to meet the federal deadline of some service to the terminal beginning in 2017. On June 16, 2018, Muni began operating all 5 , 5R , 7 , 38 , and 38R buses to the surface level of the terminal. The first phase opened for full bus service on August 12, 2018; the rooftop park opened on the same date. Greyhound and BoltBus service moved from
13965-654: The handling of the project by a private company. In 1993, the state created the Intercity High-Speed Rail Commission. In 1996, the California Legislature and Governor Pete Wilson passed the High-Speed Rail Act, which formed the California High-Speed Rail Authority (the "Authority") to plan, design, construct and operate a statewide high-speed rail system. In 2008, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger championed
14112-414: The impacts of geometric defects are intensified, track adhesion is decreased, aerodynamic resistance is greatly increased, pressure fluctuations within tunnels cause passenger discomfort, and it becomes difficult for drivers to identify trackside signalling. Standard signaling equipment is often limited to speeds below 200 km/h (124 mph), with the traditional limits of 127 km/h (79 mph) in
14259-461: The initial ones despite greater speeds). After decades of research and successful testing on a 43 km (27 mi) test track, in 2014 JR Central began constructing a Maglev Shinkansen line, which is known as the Chūō Shinkansen . These Maglev trains still have the traditional underlying tracks and the cars have wheels. This serves a practical purpose at stations and a safety purpose out on
14406-400: The integration of high-speed rail into the statewide system as its primary north-south passenger link. Although the California High-Speed Rail Authority has not indicated completion dates for the full system, the 2023 version of the state rail plan used 2050 for the completion of both Phase 1 and Phase 2. The project is split into two major phases: Phase 1 is to connect from San Francisco via
14553-542: The late 1940s and it consistently reached 161 km/h (100 mph) in its service life. These were the last "high-speed" trains to use steam power. In 1936, the Twin Cities Zephyr entered service, from Chicago to Minneapolis, with an average speed of 101 km/h (63 mph). Many of these streamliners posted travel times comparable to or even better than their modern Amtrak successors, which are limited to 127 km/h (79 mph) top speed on most of
14700-436: The left) while inside the terminal. The bus bridge includes a traffic light to facilitate the transition between right-hand traffic (outside the transit center) and left-hand traffic (inside the transit center). The rooftop park, designed by PWP Landscape Architecture , includes an amphitheater, a restaurant, and water features. The inclusion of the park was part of the winning bid in the architectural design composition for
14847-559: The line will cross Tehachapi Pass, roughly parallelling the Union Pacific Railroad's Mojave Subdivision . Due to its heavy freight traffic and sharp curves (including the famous Tehachapi Loop ), there is no current passenger service through the pass. While the proposed high-speed rail alignment will not include any long tunnels comparable to those in Pacheco Pass, it has nine shorter tunnels and several viaducts more than 200 feet (61 m) high. The maximum grade through
14994-432: The lines in the event of a power failure. However, in normal operation, the wheels are raised up into the car as the train reaches certain speeds where the magnetic levitation effect takes over. It will link Tokyo and Osaka by 2037, with the section from Tokyo to Nagoya expected to be operational by 2027. Maximum speed is anticipated at 505 km/h (314 mph). The first generation train can be ridden by tourists visiting
15141-505: The network. The German high-speed service was followed in Italy in 1938 with an electric-multiple-unit ETR 200 , designed for 200 km/h (120 mph), between Bologna and Naples. It too reached 160 km/h (99 mph) in commercial service, and achieved a world mean speed record of 203 km/h (126 mph) between Florence and Milan in 1938. In Great Britain in the same year, the streamlined steam locomotive Mallard achieved
15288-522: The new Bay Bridge . It was converted to a bus terminal in 1958 and began serving AC Transit commuter buses. The structure was damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake , necessitating replacement. In 1995, Caltrain agreed to study extending its commuter rail service from its Fourth and King terminus closer to the Financial District, including whether the obsolete Transbay Terminal should be removed, remodeled, or rebuilt. Ultimately, it
15435-605: The new terminal and Alameda. DTX was planned to open for rail service in 2019 at a budgeted cost of US$ 2,600,000,000 (equivalent to $ 3,400,000,000 in 2023). The DTX scope also includes moving the existing 4th & King Caltrain station underground. Part of the DTX project also includes building out two below-grade levels below the TTC. One level would serve as the actual train platform, hosting six tracks and three platforms to accommodate Caltrain and HSR service. The other level would be
15582-403: The new transit center, thirteen towers have been built or proposed on adjacent parcels, ranging from 300 feet (91 m) to 1,070 feet (326 m) tall, on land freed by the demolition of the former terminal and bus and freeway ramps. The most prominent of these is the city's new tallest building, Salesforce Tower. Two of the skyscrapers, Salesforce Tower and 181 Fremont, are linked directly to
15729-671: The nonstop travel time from the Salesforce Transit Center in San Francisco to Los Angeles Union Station should be no more than 2 hours and 40 minutes. Including Prop 1A, the project has received about $ 23 billion in combined state and federal funding through the end of 2023. As of February 2024, the entire Phase 1 was projected to cost between $ 89–128 billion, with allowance for future inflation. Proposition 1A specified several corridors for high-speed rail investment. It outlined four corridors in Northern California (Sacramento– Stockton – Fresno ; San Francisco– San Jose –Fresno via
15876-456: The northern Bay Area connection before the southern connection to Los Angeles. Construction on the IOS began with a groundbreaking in Fresno on January 6, 2015. The first 119 miles, stretching from Madera south to Shafter (about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Bakersfield), are being constructed under four design-build contracts (titled "construction packages"). These include constructing
16023-659: The northern and southern parts of the state. Driving or taking an intercity bus between San Francisco and Los Angeles takes six to eight hours. Since the Coast Daylight was discontinued in 1974, there has been no direct rail connection between San Francisco and Los Angeles, with the closest Amtrak service now in Oakland. The only direct rail service from Oakland to Los Angeles – the Amtrak Coast Starlight – takes eleven hours and runs once daily. While
16170-469: The official world speed record for steam locomotives at 202.58 km/h (125.88 mph). The external combustion engines and boilers on steam locomotives were large, heavy and time and labor-intensive to maintain, and the days of steam for high speed were numbered. In 1945, a Spanish engineer, Alejandro Goicoechea , developed a streamlined, articulated train that was able to run on existing tracks at higher speeds than contemporary passenger trains. This
16317-443: The park for its control over access, claiming that there could never be a political demonstration at the park. In September 2018, just a month after the transit center's opening, the TJPA revealed that the walkway around the rooftop park, made of decomposed granite, had begun to deteriorate much faster than expected. Repairs on the pathway were completed in May 2019, but it is not clear if the costs fall under warranty. Along with
16464-475: The pass would be 2.8 percent, making it the steepest portion of the Phase 1 route. From Palmdale to Burbank the proposed route crosses the San Gabriel Mountains on an alignment roughly along State Route 14 . It would require the most tunneling of any of the mountain crossings, with four separate tunnels totaling 28 miles (45 km) in length. One of the major challenges along this section
16611-422: The passenger tracks during off-peak hours. The Authority has also funded other projects such as the installation of positive train control systems along the shared commuter rail lines, and upgrades to existing stations and railyards to accommodate both future high-speed rail and other passenger rail services. Construction of the remaining Phase 1 route is still on hold due to budget constraints. As of June 2024,
16758-725: The planned route will run on dedicated high-speed tracks. As there has never been funding commitment for full construction of Phase 1, the Authority is advancing work in sections. Active construction is undertaken on the "Initial Operating Segment" (IOS), intended to begin carrying passengers along a limited portion of the route before the full Phase 1 is completed. Once this service begins operation, high-speed trains would fully replace Amtrak San Joaquins service south of Merced. San Joaquins passengers continuing to Southern California currently transfer to Amtrak Thruway buses at Bakersfield. This bus connection will remain necessary until Phase 1 of high-speed rail reaches Los Angeles. The scope of
16905-555: The planning since 1934 but it never reached its envisaged size. All high-speed service stopped in August 1939 shortly before the outbreak of World War II . On 26 May 1934, one year after Fliegender Hamburger introduction, the Burlington Railroad set an average speed record on long distance with their new streamlined train, the Zephyr , at 124 km/h (77 mph) with peaks at 185 km/h (115 mph). The Zephyr
17052-461: The platform and below the ground-level entrances. A pedestrian tunnel was planned to be constructed below Beale Street to Embarcadero station , connecting the Transbay Transit Center with BART and Muni Metro . This was later scrapped as a cost-saving measure. The proposed second Transbay Tube , which may be used by Caltrain, CAHSR, and/or BART, may also connect to the Transit Center. This extension would cost as much as $ 6 billion on top of
17199-669: The primary bus terminal for the San Francisco Bay Area , and is proposed as a possible future rail terminal. The centerpiece of the San Francisco Transbay development , the construction is governed by the Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA). The 1,430-foot-long (440 m) building sits one block south-east of Market Street , a primary commercial and transportation artery. After the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake damaged
17346-497: The program: James Carpenter , Julie Chang , Tim Hawkinson , Jenny Holzer and Ned Kahn . In June 2017, SFAC and TJPA announced the planned Hawkinson installation would be cancelled as "the nature of the materials, the sculpture's size, and its location" made it "a particularly complex engineering task." The original Transbay Terminal opened in 1939 to serve Key System and East Bay Electric Lines commuter trains and Sacramento Northern Railway interurban trains operating over
17493-401: The project includes the aboveground structure plus a belowground shell for the second phase. The structure has four levels: the ground floor with entrances, retail space, ticketing, and Muni/Golden Gate Transit boarding platforms; the second floor with retail space, food hall, offices, and Greyhound ticket counter and waiting room; the bus deck with bus bays surrounding a central waiting area; and
17640-400: The project is being built in sections. As of 2024, the state was targeting completion of a 171-mile (275 km) long Initial Operating Segment (IOS) connecting Merced and Bakersfield . The IOS is projected to commence revenue service as a self-contained high-speed rail system between 2030–2033, at a cost of $ 28–35 billion, and will replace current San Joaquins service south of Merced. With
17787-571: The rail corridor is also heavily used by BNSF freight trains coming from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach , requiring further separation to prevent congestion. As of November 2023, the Authority proposed to build a fourth track on the existing three-track corridor, with two electrified tracks to be used for passenger trains (including high-speed rail) and two non-electrified tracks for freight, in addition to grade separations and crossing safety improvements. Some freight trains may be allowed to use
17934-635: The rooftop park. Salesforce Tower has a dedicated pair of elevators, open to the public and accessible via the rear lobby, which serve as one of the access points to the park. The following services use the bus deck: Several additional services use the street-level transit plaza: Numerous other transit services converge into downtown San Francisco with stops nearby. These include BART and Muni Metro at Embarcadero station and Montgomery Street station , Golden Gate Transit peak-only routes (with stops on Fremont Street), Muni bus and streetcar routes, SamTrans routes 292 and 397, AC Transit route 800, and
18081-627: The route from San Francisco to Gilroy, in order to improve track capacity, speed and safety for combined Caltrain/high-speed rail operations. Since many at- grade crossings will remain, other safety improvements such as quad gates are being considered. In Southern California, the Link US project plans to reconfigure Los Angeles Union Station from a terminal to a run-through station, and add two dedicated high-speed rail platforms. The shared Amtrak and Metrolink tracks from Burbank to Anaheim will require electrification. Between Los Angeles and Fullerton ,
18228-553: The route of SR 152 . It would include several tunnels , the longest of which would be 13.5 miles (21.7 km), making it the longest intercity rail tunnel in the US. Engineering challenges along this section include "poor-quality rock formations, faults and shear zones, and potentially high groundwater inflows that can affect tunnel stability." The Authority expects to start design work on this section in 2024, and begin pre-construction work such as land acquisition in about 2026-2028, funds permitting. The Bakersfield–Palmdale section of
18375-411: The route. The exact siting for these facilities has yet to be determined. As of 2019, both Fresno and Kern Counties had expressed interest in hosting the heavy maintenance facility. Phase 2 would construct two major extensions to the system. The northern extension would stretch 115 miles (185 km) from Merced to Sacramento, with intermediate stops at Modesto and Stockton . It would largely parallel
18522-484: The skipped step, and those micro-cracks grew into larger ones. The facility is under warranty for two years "after substantial completion", placing financial responsibility for the issue on contractors, Webcor Builders and Obayashi Corporation , and their subcontractors. The beams were fabricated by Herrick Corporation in Stockton as part of a $ 189 million contract between Skanska USA Civil West of New York and
18669-485: The state's inland regions to coastal cities. Opponents argue that it is too expensive, and that the funds should be spent on other transportation or infrastructure projects. The route choice has been controversial, along with the decision to construct the first high-speed segment in the Central Valley rather than in more heavily populated parts of the state. The project has experienced significant delays and cost overruns caused by management issues, legal challenges, and lack of
18816-530: The state's total emissions from all sectors. In 2023, Caltrans issued the 2023 California State Rail Plan, which is a comprehensive plan to upgrade and modernize the state's intercity passenger and freight rail systems through 2050. Provisions of the plan include increasing the capacity of existing railways, establishing new services, improving service frequencies and train speeds, and integrating ticketing between transit agencies so ticketing through all rail systems can be done statewide. The state rail plan outlines
18963-464: The structure. The building includes a free, 20-passenger aerial tram to provide access from street level (at Mission Street and Fremont Street) to the rooftop park. Described as a "whimsical gondola" by the building's architects, it was the second passenger-carrying aerial tram to operate in San Francisco, after the one formerly located at the Cliff House (operational 1955–1965). According to
19110-535: The test track. China is developing two separate high-speed maglev systems. In Europe, high-speed rail began during the International Transport Fair in Munich in June 1965, when Dr Öpfering, the director of Deutsche Bundesbahn (German Federal Railways), performed 347 demonstrations at 200 km/h (120 mph) between Munich and Augsburg by DB Class 103 hauled trains. The same year
19257-529: The urban policy advocacy group SPUR noted the risk of urban sprawl as a result of increased housing demand in the Central Valley, and that the state should consider mitigating this in its planning approach. Phase 1 of high-speed rail is projected to reduce annual statewide CO2 emissions by about 0.6 million tons by replacing highway trips and flights; however, the Orange County Register has noted this would only account for 0.2 percent of
19404-540: The wider rail gauge, and thus standard gauge was adopted for high-speed service. With the sole exceptions of Russia, Finland, and Uzbekistan all high-speed rail lines in the world are still standard gauge, even in countries where the preferred gauge for legacy lines is different. The new service, named Shinkansen (meaning new main line ) would provide a new alignment, 25% wider standard gauge utilising continuously welded rails between Tokyo and Osaka with new rolling stock, designed for 250 km/h (160 mph). However,
19551-629: The world's population, without a single train passenger fatality. (Suicides, passengers falling off the platforms, and industrial accidents have resulted in fatalities.) Since their introduction, Japan's Shinkansen systems have been undergoing constant improvement, not only increasing line speeds. Over a dozen train models have been produced, addressing diverse issues such as tunnel boom noise, vibration, aerodynamic drag , lines with lower patronage ("Mini shinkansen"), earthquake and typhoon safety, braking distance , problems due to snow, and energy consumption (newer trains are twice as energy-efficient as
19698-470: Was achieved by providing the locomotive and cars with a unique axle system that used one axle set per car end, connected by a Y-bar coupler. Amongst other advantages, the centre of mass was only half as high as usual. This system became famous under the name of Talgo ( Tren Articulado Ligero Goicoechea Oriol ), and for half a century was the main Spanish provider of high-speed trains. In the early 1950s,
19845-530: Was also made about "current harnessing" at high-speed by the pantographs, which was solved 20 years later by the Zébulon TGV 's prototype. With some 45 million people living in the densely populated Tokyo– Osaka corridor, congestion on road and rail became a serious problem after World War II , and the Japanese government began thinking about ways to transport people in and between cities. Because Japan
19992-468: Was at 98 percent. The full Merced–Bakersfield line was expected to be complete in 2029, with passenger service starting around 2030–2033. Concurrently with Central Valley construction, the Authority has worked with other California transportation agencies and rail operators to prepare the northern and southern blended segments for high-speed rail operations. In the Bay Area, the electrification of Caltrain will enable electric high-speed trains to run on
20139-551: Was closed for repairs in September 2018 after cracks were found in structural beams; services resumed in July and August 2019. Designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects (PCPA), the Salesforce Transit Center is about 1,430 feet (440 m) long and 165 feet (50 m) wide. It occupies the entire block between Minna and Natoma Streets (just southeast of Mission Street), and stretches from Beale Street to 140 feet (43 m) east of 2nd Street. The first phase of
20286-528: Was decided that the Transbay Terminal should be rebuilt, with the rail extension entering the Terminal under Second Street. In November 1999, San Francisco voters adopted Proposition H declaring that Caltrain shall be extended downtown into a new regional intermodal transit station constructed to replace the former Transbay Terminal. The Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) was founded in 2001 as
20433-403: Was extended a further 161 km (100 mi), and further construction has resulted in the network expanding to 2,951 km (1,834 mi) of high speed lines as of 2024, with a further 211 km (131 mi) of extensions currently under construction and due to open in 2031. The cumulative patronage on the entire system since 1964 is over 10 billion, the equivalent of approximately 140% of
20580-575: Was inaugurated by the TEE Le Capitole between Paris and Toulouse , with specially adapted SNCF Class BB 9200 locomotives hauling classic UIC cars, and a full red livery. It averaged 119 km/h (74 mph) over the 713 km (443 mi). Salesforce Transit Center The Salesforce Transit Center , also known as the Transbay Transit Center , is a transit center in downtown San Francisco . It serves as
20727-543: Was made of stainless steel and, like the Fliegender Hamburger, was diesel powered, articulated with Jacobs bogies , and could reach 160 km/h (99 mph) as commercial speed. The new service was inaugurated 11 November 1934, traveling between Kansas City and Lincoln , but at a lower speed than the record, on average speed 74 km/h (46 mph). In 1935, the Milwaukee Road introduced
20874-586: Was moved to the interim Temporary Transbay Terminal. The $ 18 million outdoor terminal is located on the block bounded by Folsom, Beale, Howard and Main Streets in the South of Market district , two blocks from the site of the former Transbay Terminal. Ground was broken for the new Transbay Transit Center four days later. Much of the initial construction work was underground, and aboveground evidence of construction did not appear until late 2014. As originally planned,
21021-407: Was not only a part of the Shinkansen revolution: the Shinkansen offered high-speed rail travel to the masses. The first Bullet trains had 12 cars and later versions had up to 16, and double-deck trains further increased the capacity. After three years, more than 100 million passengers had used the trains, and the milestone of the first one billion passengers was reached in 1976. In 1972, the line
21168-525: Was resource limited and did not want to import petroleum for security reasons, energy-efficient high-speed rail was an attractive potential solution. Japanese National Railways (JNR) engineers began to study the development of a high-speed regular mass transit service. In 1955, they were present at the Lille 's Electrotechnology Congress in France, and during a 6-month visit, the head engineer of JNR accompanied
21315-402: Was still more than 30 years away. After the breakthrough of electric railroads, it was clearly the infrastructure – especially the cost of it – which hampered the introduction of high-speed rail. Several disasters happened – derailments, head-on collisions on single-track lines, collisions with road traffic at grade crossings, etc. The physical laws were well-known, i.e. if the speed was doubled,
21462-405: Was to complete a link between San Francisco and Los Angeles, and that any high-speed rail routes constructed should follow these corridors. It did not require that all the corridors must be built, indicate the order in which they should be constructed, or specify precise station locations other than in San Francisco or Los Angeles. The planned high-speed rail system would reduce travel times between
21609-477: Was too heavy for much of the tracks, so Cincinnati Car Company , J. G. Brill and others pioneered lightweight constructions, use of aluminium alloys, and low-level bogies which could operate smoothly at extremely high speeds on rough interurban tracks. Westinghouse and General Electric designed motors compact enough to be mounted on the bogies. From 1930 on, the Red Devils from Cincinnati Car Company and
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