(The Associated Press circulated the following on May 2, 2011.)
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — California high-speed rail officials are set to vote this week on a proposal to launch the bullet trains through the San Francisco Bay area on fixed-up Caltrain tracks, rather than brand-new ones.
The San Jose Mercury News reports that the proposal would cost $1.5 billion to electrify the two Caltrain tracks instead of $6.1 billion for the original plan of building four tracks between San Francisco and San Jose.
By sharing tracks, the bullet trains wouldn’t be able to travel at their maximum speed, and officials would have to run fewer trains.
Full story: San Francisco Chronicle