Japanese to compete for Californian bullet train
Published: Mon, 2015-05-04 07:33- Likes 3
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promoted his country's high-speed train industry when he visits California and the US in the end of April, setting up a competition with manufacturers in China and other countries.
The global high-speed rail industry is eager to earn a piece of California's planned $68 billion high-speed railway project. By 2029, the rail system will run from San Francisco to Los Angeles, making the trip between the cities in under three hours, and will eventually extend to Sacramento and San Diego, totaling 800 miles with up to 24 stations.
China CNR Corp, its unit Tangshan Railway and US-based SunGroup USA are among those who have submitted an expression of interest in supplying 95 trains for the project, according to previous news reports.
Noting that almost all of the current technology and expertise in high-speed rail belongs to overseas companies, Rod Diridon, Sr., emeritus executive director of the Mineta Transportation Institute in San Jose, California, and a former member of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, said California and other potential US high-speed sites have no choice but to look to foreign suppliers.
Source: California High-Speed Rail Authority