Brightline West broke ground; passengers planned for 2028

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Handout rendering of a Brightline West train.

Getting from Las Vegas to Southern California in a high-speed bullet train might sound like a thing of the future, but Brightline West is working on making it a reality.

Construction is currently under way for Brightline West, a 218-mile railway system that will connect a Los Angeles suburb to Sin City, turning a 4-hour car ride into a 2-hour high speed train ride.

The metal on the tracks won’t be dry or operational until 2028, just in time for the Summer Olympic Games which are set to take place in Los Angeles then.

It took an estimated $12 billion to make this “dream” a reality, with Brightline securing $3 billion in federal funds in December and another $2.5 billion in private bonds from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

“People have been dreaming of high-speed rail in America for decades – and now, with billions of dollars of support made possible …. it’s finally happening,” Pete Buttigieg, secretary of transportation said Monday.

What is Brightline West?

Brightline West is a years-long eco-transportation project by Brightline that will connect Nevada to Southern California via a 218-mile railway system.

Fully electric and zero emission trains will make the trek, reaching speeds of 200 miles per hour.

Brightline West route and map, Rancho Cucamonga among stops

Brightline West’s high-speed rail will make plenty of stops along its 218-mile route from Las Vegas to Rancho Cucamonga. Victor Valley and Hesperia are among the stops included on the trip.

Brightline says the route, which has full environmental clearance, will run along I-15.

Wes Edens to connect other ‘city pairs’ in future

Wes Edens, Brightline’s founder, called the project “historic.”