What's the state of high speed rail in the U.S.?

The rest of the world has found a way to travel faster, more convenient, that focuses growth around stations and fights climate change.

It's Wednesday, May 29th. Tickets, tickets please. Tickets, please. It's Science Friday.

I'm Cyfry producer Dee Peter Schmidt.

Unlike major countries, including Japan, China, and France that have invested in trains that go upwards of 200 miles per hour,

the U.S. does not have a high-speed rail system,

even though the country was once known for

its railroads in the 1800s. But it looks like we're at a turning point. California's high-speed

rail project, which aims to connect Los Angeles to San Francisco, is well underway, and there

are lots of other exciting rail projects gaining steam across the country. Here's I wrote with a look at

some of those undertakings and why there's been renewed investment in rail infrastructure in the U.S. There's a lot to talk about and here to give us an update on high-speed rail in the U.S. and what challenges it still faces is my guest. Rod Deeridine, co-chair of the U.S. High Speed Rail Association. Welcome to Science Friday. Nice to be here. Thank you for inviting me.

You're welcome. You know, Rod, it's so frustrating, isn't it, to talk about high speed rail in America?

It's almost an oxymoron. It's not just frustrating. It's embarrassing. We travel around the world.

We see the other countries, 18 other countries with high-speed rail systems, and the United

States is supposed to be a world leader dominated by the oil companies to the extent that we

haven't created high-speed rail, which, of course, is electrically powered.

And why has it taken it so long, then, to get these kinds of projects going in the U.S.?

We have been wedded to the petroleum-powered automobile for the last hundred years,

and it has assumed the responsibility for our transportation requirements,

the automobile, the aircraft now, and we just have to break that addiction

and recognize that the rest of the world

has found a way to travel faster, more convenient, that focuses growth around stations and fights

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