CAJON PASS, CA. (Pain In The Pass) >> Brightline West has proposed to extend down the Cajon Pass to Rancho Cucamonga from Victorville.

The company plans to start work from Las Vegas to Victorville soon, they hope by next year. This week they just release, they will connect from Victorville down the Cajon Pass to Rancho Cucamonga by using the Metrolink lines and Union Pacific lines. With planning for the 170-mile train to Vegas well underway, the company on Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021, signed agreements with California State Transportation Agency, the California Department of Transportation and the California High-Speed Rail Authority for the Rancho Cucamonga station.

The agreements allow the company to begin negotiating for rights of way that will stretch for 50 miles within the 15 Freeway. The goal is to connect the high-speed train to the Metrolink system at a future station in Rancho Cucamonga. Then build a station in the city of Los Angeles and this will offer travel between Los Angeles and Las Vegas by high speed train.

Brightline predicts the high-speed train service from Las Vegas to Rancho Cucamonga will take about two hours, half the driving time. The trip between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, using Metrolink and the new high-speed train through the High Desert, will take about three hours one way.

Map courtesy of Brightline West

Why would trains be very beneficial for California and the Las Vegas area? All due to the weekend traffic that could save you at least 2+ hours of traffic time at non peak times. The trains would run every 45 minutes from 6am to midnight. Train will carrying up to 500 people at speeds approaching 200 mph. The trip from Victorville to Las Vegas would take about 90 minutes. The Victorville station will be built off of Interstate 15 and Dale Evans Parkway and the Las Vegas station would be near the strip.

This memorandum of understanding marks a critical milestone in our goal to connect the Los Angeles metropolitan area with the iconic entertainment destination of Las Vegas, said Mike Reininger, CEO of Brightline Holdings, in a prepared statement.

“This system will provide an optimal travel solution between Southern California and Las Vegas, and opens up the reality of emission-free, hospitality-focused high-speed rail service to millions of people traveling between these destinations every year,” Reininger added.

A timeline for the project has not been set, said Greta Seidman, spokesperson for the project. Once ground is broken, construction of the train line will take about four years to start transportation people. The cost of a ticket has not yet been revealed.

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