§26101 High-speed Rail Corridor Planning

Summary

The Secretary may give money to public agencies to plan high-speed rail corridors. The grant can pay up to 50% of the publicly financed costs. At least 20% of the publicly financed costs must come from State and local sources, and those State and local funds cannot be federal money. Projects are eligible if they are needed to make engineering, operational, financial, environmental, or socioeconomic projections and to help create a sensible financial and institutional plan, or if the work is buying locomotives, rolling stock, track, or signal equipment. Examples of eligible planning work include environmental studies, feasibility and economic studies (like ridership and revenue forecasts), job and community impact studies, coordination with state and metro planning, operational planning, route choice and buying rights-of-way, preliminary engineering and design, identifying specific improvements (such as electrification, line straightening, bridge work, new equipment, stations, ticketing, parking, track and signal work, and intermodal terminals), making financing plans, and forming public/private partnerships. No money may be used for planning on the main line of the Northeast Corridor between Washington, District of Columbia, and Boston, Massachusetts. The Secretary decides who gets grants using factors like how the corridor fits national high-speed rail policy, whether it aims for sustained speeds of 125 mph or greater, how it links with local and state planning, connections to other parts of the transportation network, effects on congestion and air quality, existing financial support from State, local, or private sources, estimated ridership and costs, job and community impacts, revenue prospects, whether a route and improvements are already identified, and whether the corridor has been officially designated as high-speed.