High-speed rail initiatives in the US

In April 2009, the Obama administration released its strategic plan for high-speed rail (HSR) in the US. This is the first time that the US government has made money available for a nationwide high-speed passenger rail program; the budget for this purpose has gone from $0 to over $8 billion in two years.

The strategic plan defined a process by which states, groups of states or other entities could compete for money from the Federal government to develop individual rail projects or corridor rail programs. This was followed in mid-June by detailed guidance regarding application requirements and procedures for competing for HSR project funding.

These two events represent the initial milestones in the implementation of the new Federal High Speed Intercity Passenger Rail (HSIPR) Program. As one of the administration’s foremost transportation priorities, the goal of the HSIPR Program is to address the nation’s transportation challenges by investing in an efficient passenger rail network that connects communities across the US.

The FRA guidance provides four funding tracks:

• Track 1 – projects: Provide grants to apply individual projects that are ‘ready to go’, with preliminary engineering and environmental work completed. Federal funding share can be 100%.
• Track 2 – programs: Develop entire phases or geographic sections of HSR corridors that have completed corridor plans, environmental documentation and a prioritized list of projects to help meet the corridor objectives. Federal shares for projects under this track can also be up to 100%.
• Track 3 – planning: Enter into cooperative agreements for planning activities, to create the corridor program and project pipeline needed to fully develop an HSR network. Planning activities funded under this Track require a 50% non-Federal match.
• Track 4 – fy2009 appropriations funded projects: An alternative to Track 1 for applicants able to contribute at least 50% of project cost. This Track offers applicants simplified grant agreement terms, and up to five years to complete projects (vs. two years under Track 1).

The FRA required potential applicants to indicate their interest via a pre-application that was due in July. A total of 278 pre-applications, amounting to $102 billion were received. Applications will be reviewed in a three stage process.

Following an initial stage to verify an applicant’s basic eligibility, applications will be evaluated together according to six criteria: transportation benefits, economic recovery, other public benefits, project management approach, sustainability of benefits and timeliness of project completion. A rating between 1 and 5 will be assigned for each applicable criterion, and an overall rating produced for each applicant. A final selection stage will review the applications considering criteria such as regional distribution, innovation and partnerships.

The FRA expects to develop and enhance its application review process over time. It is widely recognized that this is just a ‘down payment’ against the full costs of developing an HSR system in the US.

As part of the discussion of the USDOT surface transportation multiyear funding framework, a congressional committee recently proposed authorizing $50 billion from general government revenues for HSR development, and between $1 and $4 billion are likely to be included in the FY2010 transportation appropriation bill.

These are exciting times for HSR in the US, and a group high-speed rail consultants from Steer Davies Gleave’s Boston and London offices is at the forefront of helping our clients progress the debate, planning and delivery in this area.