A landowner in rural Texas is locked in a legal battle with the companies that are planning to build the Texas Central high-speed rail (HSR) project, which would establish a line between downtown Dallas and the intersection of two highways northwest of Houston. Texas Central plans to offer a 90-minute trip time point-to-point, using Japanese Shikansen equipment.
Passenger rail in the United States has fallen a long way since it was the dominant mode of long-distance transportation. In a world of competition among cars, planes and trains, the point-to-point functionality of automobiles and the speed of planes means that most trains with existing technologies cannot compete.
Despite producing more than one-third of U.S. crude oil output, urbanization, rapid economic growth and congestion mean Texans could be getting out of their cars and on to high-speed trains much sooner than most other Americans, if Texas Central Railway’s plan to link Dallas and Houston without one penny of public funding is successful.
Texas Central Partners LLC, developers of a proposed high-speed passenger rail line between North Texas and Houston, has contracted with WSP USA for pre-construction engineering support, focusing on engineering, cost estimating and scheduling.
The board of directors of Texas Central Partners, LLC (Texas Central), the private firm attempting to build a high-speed train connecting North Texas, the Brazos Valley and Houston, has named Carlos F. Aguilar as CEO. Former CEO Tim Keith becomes President.
