DC to NYC in 96 Minutes (A Little) Closer to Becoming Reality

• February 9th 2011

by Mark Wellborn

Back in September, we reported that Amtrak President Joseph Boardman was hopeful a high-speed rail could be in place by 2040, which would among other things, reduce travel time between DC and New York City from 162 minutes to 96 minutes.

With a goal of making this a reality and increasing high-speed rail access across the country, Vice President Joe Biden announced yesterday the Obama administration’s plans to allot billions of dollars to fund high-speed and intercity rail improvements and construction over the next six years. Vice President Biden made the announcement at Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station, the same place Boardman made his announcement five months ago.

The full White House press release on the plans can be viewed here. Those plans include the development and improvement of three main corridors:

• Core Express: Corridors with electrified trains traveling on dedicated tracks at speeds of 125 to 250 mph or higher.
• Regional: Corridors with train speeds of 90 to 125 mph that will see increases in trips and reductions in travel times.
• Emerging: Corridors with trains traveling at up to 90 mph will provide travelers in emerging rail corridors with access to the larger national high-speed rail network.

Currently, the U.S. answer to high-speed rail is the Acela, a train familiar to business folk that travel between DC, Philadelphia and New York City. While it can reach a top speed of 150 mph, it averages a speed less than 70 mph, and is regularly called out by passengers for its frequent delays.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dc_to_nyc_in_96_minutes_closer_to_becoming_reality/2974.