Conference of Mayors report lauds HSR

From Railway Age

The U.S. Conference of Mayors Monday released a new report stressing the positive impact of high speed rail on various U.S. corridors, citing four specific cities as examples. The four cities—Los Angeles, Chicago, Orlando, Fla., and Albany, N.Y. —could significantly benefit from high speed rail (HSR) with as many as 150,000 new jobs and some $19 billion in new business revenues created in total, the report said.

Prepared by the Economic Development Research Group and sponsored by Siemens Mobility, the report, conducted from January through May of 2010, assessed high speed intercity passenger rail’s economic impact on the city,metropolitan, and regional economies. It examined job creation, the effects of improved market access, greater connectivity, work-related travel time savings, and increased income and business sales.

The full report can be accessed at usmayors.org/highspeedrail.