![]() Work on the BKC station, connecting Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and Shilphata in Maharashtra has also begun, reports said. 1UChboKX41- Ministry of Railways JanuTo Have First Under-Sea Tunnel “Once operational, the system will create connections and opportunities never thought possible.”Īt the other end of the line in Dallas, Mayor Eric Johnson repeated his support for the project.Catch a glimpse of the real-time progress on the first River Bridge (320 m) at MAHSR Corridor. The construction of high-speed rail will have a generational impact, creating thousands of jobs right here in Houston and injecting billions of dollars into our local businesses,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner in a statement. “Today’s announcement from Texas Central means that this landmark project is closer than ever to breaking ground. “This project has been flawed from the beginning and the FRA has ignored calls from concerned property owners, safety professionals, and even other rail companies.”īut leaders in Dallas and Houston have defended the high-speed railroad and worked with the company to secure areas to build stations and lines. “The Federal Railroad Administration is neglecting its regulatory duty to protect Americans from life-threatening projects like the proposed high-speed rail project in Texas,” organization spokesperson Taylor Ward said via email. The organization ReRoute The Route, which has called the proposed path “the most dangerous and cheapest option,” criticized the federal government for the decision. “Texas Central will likely trumpet this decision as major progress for its project, but they are simply arranging deckchairs on the Titanic," Workman said. Kyle Workman, president of Texans Against High-Speed Rail, said in a press release that the project will cost more than what is projected. The spokesperson denied that the company has asked for government grants, loans or subsidies. Ben Leman accused the company of asking for billions of federal dollars and putting up "Texas land as collateral to the Japanese government in the event the project fails." A spokesperson for Texas Central explained that the company gave its lender, a company called Japan-Texas High Speed Railway Cayman LP, a security interest on land it's acquired and said that is typical in real estate transactions. A spokesperson said that after the approvals from the FRA, they are focused on securing funding and they already have letters of intent from unnamed banks in Japan and Europe for over half of the anticipated debt needed for the project. The company has previously denied that investors have abandoned the project. “The lawmakers, landowners and rural communities along the route who oppose this project look forward to this application process because we believe it will finally force TCR to publicly disclose their shaky financial projections to the STB, reveal why potential investors have abandoned the project and why taxpayers will likely be on the hook when it ultimately fails,” Brady said. As of September, the company hasn't needed to use eminent domain. In May, Texas courts ruled in favor of the project and against landowners trying to stop the eminent domain process. The Surface Transportation Board needs to approve the construction, but the use of eminent domain is a state matter, according to agency documents. In a statement, he said the rulings still don't allow use of eminent domain or for Texas Central to start construction. Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, represents part of the areas affected by the project. According to Texas Central Railroad, they already have control of over 600 parcels of land - approximately 40% of the parcels they need for the project - as well as sites for stations in Dallas, Houston and the Brazos Valley. The project has seen resistance from property owners in rural areas of Central Texas, where the railroad would travel through. The train will use the same technology as the Shinkansen bullet trains in Japan, which can reach speeds of more than 200 mph. The company estimates that the construction for the project will take up to six years, with a total cost of around $20 billion. “The release of the final (approvals) by the Federal Railroad Administration represents years of work by countless individuals, affirming a very thorough and careful federal regulatory process that will make the Texas Central Railroad the first high-speed rail system to be implemented in the United States.” “This is the moment we have been working towards,” said Carlos Aguilar, CEO of Texas Central Railroad in a statement. The rulings announced Monday brought cheers from leaders in Dallas and Houston, but criticism from project opponents along the path the train could take to connect the cities.Īlthough the company had to layoff 28 workers due to the coronavirus-related financial crisis in March, Texas Central Railroad had described the project as “shovel ready” and waiting for the federal government’s approval.
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