Spain reigns over Europe’s high-speed networks
When travelers think of European high-speed rail travel, France’s iconic Trains a Grande Vitesse (TGV) or Germany’s elegant white ICE trains tend to come to mind. Those who’ve visited Italy will no doubt have encountered Trenitalia’s Frecciarossa (Red Arrow) or the stunning scarlet trains of its strong competitor Italo. But Europe’s longest high-speed network is not in Italy, Germany or France. That honor is held by Spain, where billions of euros have been invested into new AVE high-speed railways radiating from Madrid over the last 30 years. [cnn.com]
Baltimore’s Penn Station awaits its rebirth
Although a contract has not been let, plans are for scaffolding to encase the granite walls of Baltimore’s Pennsylvania Station by year’s end. The stone facade will be repointed and cleaned. The original windows will be repaired and painted. The graceful steel canopies around the station’s perimeter also are due for repairs. Amtrak, which owns the station, also is creating a new high-speed track and platforms. The passenger rail carrier’s ambitious master plan for Penn Station involves at least six parcels of land. If all are ever developed and constructed, the 1911 station would sit in the middle of its own neighborhood. [baltimoresun.com]
Will Brightline’s LA-Vegas bullet imperil Mojave sheep?
In California’s Mojave Desert landscape, severe drought and record-breaking heat are challenging the survival of bighorn sheep and other species and forcing them to search ever more widely for food and water. But conservationists fear that the ability of animals to roam could become dangerously restricted in the face of a proposed high-speed electric rail line connecting Southern California and Las Vegas. A coalition of conservation groups is demanding that the rail developer, Brightline West of Miami, include a wildlife overcrossing in its project plans. The request has sparked a surprising showdown between naturalists and advocates of emissions-free technology. [latimes.com]
Has China’s train to the US project gone off track?
Given their chequered past, and present, a purpose-built connection between the US and China could be tricky. It would require huge cooperation between the superpower and the wannabe-superpower. Nevertheless, back in 2014 there were numerous news reports that an underwater train was being built. An environmental and diplomatic win, potentially. But seven years later, there’s no sign of it. So we decided to investigate. Reports in 2014 said the 8,078 mile-long train journey would go from China over to Russia, and on to Canada, before finally arriving at its destination, the US. [euronews.com]
How streetcars changed the face of Phoenix forever
For six decades since its beginning in 1887, the Phoenix Street Railway stood as a symbol of an expanding American city. Its cars traveled more than 15.6 million miles on 28 tracks encompassing eight lines and ferried tens of millions of passengers around the city. But the company’s 61 years of service that helped transform a rural farming community into a modern urban center did not come without hardships. The Phoenix trolleys nearly disappeared from city streets three times over the years. But time and again they proved resilient, mostly because the riding public loved them so much, right up until their last day. [azcentral.com]
