The U.S. Department of Transportation announced $2.5 billion in private activity bonds for Brightline West’s high-speed rail project, connecting Las Vegas and Southern California.
In December, U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) announced $3 billion in federal grant funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Brightline West estimates the project will remove 3 million cars from Interstate-15 annually, reducing more than 400,000 tons of carbon emissions each year, and creating 35,000 union jobs.
Left: Brightline West System Map; Right: Brightline West Las Vegas station rendering (Courtesy of Brightline West)
Last year, Senator Rosen and Cortez Masto led a bipartisan group of colleagues in a letter to the U.S. Department of Transportation in strong support of Nevada’s project application. The bipartisan group includes Representatives Steven Horsford (D-NV-04), Susie Lee (D-NV-03), Dina Titus (D-NV-01), Mark Amodei (R-NV-02), Nanette Barragán (D-CA-44), Jay Obernolte (R-CA-23), John Garamendi (D-CA-08), and Jimmy Gomez (D-CA-34).
In August, Senator Rosen hosted a press conference in Las Vegas with Brightline CEO Michael Reininger, Clark County Commissioner Michael Naft, Nevada Department of Transportation Director Tracy Larkin Thomason, President and CEO of the Vegas Chamber Mary Beth Sewald, and President of the Transportation Trades Department for the AFL-CIO Greg Regan to call on Department of Transportation to approve Nevada’s application.
