Article from VegasInc. Will DX ever lay tracks?

All,
We came across this great article this week from Richard N. Velotta and Vegas Inc. discussing the money needs DesertXpress will be applying for in Federal Loans... (that weren't needed at first*) and questions items about the project.


Richard Velotta also asks some very obvious questions that everyone is asking:
[...]

• "If the feds OK the loan, it would be the biggest one ever approved for that program. Since 1998, when the program was initiated, just more than $1 billion in loans have been approved on 28 rail projects. DesertXpress is seeking $4.9 billion."
• "What are the chances the loan is approved? It’s hard to gauge with someone as powerful as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in the picture.One would have to think that any serious review of ridership would include the million-dollar question every critic asks: Victorville?
• “Based on our analysis of the survey data, a total of 115 Las Vegas traveler respondents were asked: ‘If there were a high-speed train from California to Las Vegas, would you consider a one-day trip on this train?’ Respondents to this question could not be provided with any additional information about the high-speed rail system, including any basic information about the routing, cost or amenities, because the surveys were being personally administered.”  
• In other words, many of those asked about their willingness to ride a train to Las Vegas weren’t told they’d have to ride it from Victorville.
• Still, it wouldn’t surprise me if the Federal Railroad Administration approved the DesertXpress loan. There are some forces in Washington that seem to be greater than a runaway train.

[...]


You can read the entire article here:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/jul/25/runaway-train/


*You can also find (2) articles about DX not needing the loan from 2007 and then admitting that the project would need the loan funding this year here:
http://canvmaglevnews.blogspot.com/2011/02/desertxpress-now-needs-fed-tax-to-build.html

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China HSR trains hit head-on

All,
Two China (in the East Zejiang Province) HSR trains have hit head-on (one was stalled on a track due to lightning.)  This sent (4) of the train cars off of a bridge and de-railed (2).  Reports this morning are estimating that 35 have been killed.


With the recent issues with the China HSR system there were also dismissals of high positions from their respected offices.  


You can find the articles here:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-07/24/c_131006177.htm


http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/nationworld/sns-rt-us-china-traintre76m26t-20110723,0,4025278,print.story
[...]

China sacks three senior officials after train crash

Royston Chan and Maxim Duncan
Reuters
10:03 AM EDT, July 24, 2011

WENZHOU, China (Reuters) - China sacked three senior railway officials on Sunday after a collision between two high-speed trains killed at least 43 people and raised new questions about the safety of the fast-growing rail network.

A bullet train on Saturday night hit another express which lost power following a lightning strike, state media said, in the country's deadliest rail disaster since 2008.

The power failure knocked out an electronic safety system designed to alert trains about stalled locomotives on the line.

As rescue teams and firefighters with excavators searched for survivors, state television said a 4-year-old boy and a male toddler had been pulled alive from the wreckage.

It was not known how many people were on the trains, which collided on a bridge near the city of Wenzhou in Zhejiang province, some 860 miles south of Beijing.

"The task for us now is to clear the debris and also to check for survivors in those areas that we have not gone to," said 35-year-old rescue worker Wang Jun. "Also, we are trying to get the railway line to be operational again."

Authorities moved quickly to assuage public anger by sacking the head of the Shanghai railway bureau, his deputy and the bureau's Communist Party chief, the Railways Ministry said in a statement on its website (www.china-mor.gov.cn).

The three will "also be subject to investigation," the statement added.

(Additional reporting by Aly Song in Wenzhou and Sally Huang and Sui-Lee Wee in Beijing; Writing by Sui-Lee Wee and Ben Blanchard)

Copyright © 2011, Reuters

[...]


Photos of the accident site here:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/photo/2011-07/24/c_131005358.htm



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Voters confuse Florida HSR & SunRail projects

All,


We came across this article from the Florida, Orlando Sentinel newspaper about how with the recent stroke of his pen (Transportation Sec. Lahood) started the new SunRail commuter rail project (first phase of 31 miles) for Orlando, there was a poll conducted by the Orlando Regional Realtor Association on June 22.


They asked 400 voters what best described the project.  36% correctly identified the project.  But 45% of voters thought that the SunRail project was the High Speed Rail project running West to East linking Tampa to Orlando (that was cancelled earlier this year by Florida Gov. Scott.)  17% were unsure.


You can find the story here:
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/news_politics/2011/07/nearly-half-of-orange-voters-confuse-high-speed-rail-and-sunrail.html


http://www.sunrail.com/


Could this be the same confusion for projects going to Victorville and Anaheim?


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Shelby Tuatara aims for Veyron Maglev record

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Barstow Casino sets Environmental Impact Statement Date

All,


The proposed Barstow Casino has set a date for its public hearing for its EIS.


6:00 pm July 27 at the Gym of Barstow College (2700 Barstow Road).

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DX gets Record of Decision

All,

Over the past week the FRA has given its ROD (record of decision) on July 8.  You can find the FRA download here:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/rpd/downloads/ROD_FINAL.pdf


It is also available from the following libraries:
Victorville
Barstow
Las Vegas
Clark County


You can find all the links on the FRA page here:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/rpd/freight/1703.shtml


And here is where you can find all the station proposals:
http://www.fra.dot.gov/downloads/rrdev/Appendix_A-3_Station_Site_Plan.pdf


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Maglev Movie Monday (July 11)

All,


We came across this youtube video that is a great selling point for future build outs of the system.  This video is directed to the U.K. market, but has some great POV shots of Maglev working within traffic areas, and some great fly-by shots.







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More MAGLEV photos July 2011

All,

We came across a German website that has a lot of "non-traditional" MAGLEV photos.  These photos are mainly of TR 09.  We've pulled a sample of these photos so you can see for yourself.  You can find the photos here.

http://www.bahnbilder.de/name/galerie/kategorie/deutschland~magnetschwebe--schwebe--h-bahnen~transrapid-teststrecke.html

(The current TR 09, being transported from the Munich Airport to the Test site in Lathen)

Check out how straight that track is!

Here is the older TR 08 running in summer time fields of Lathen.

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Proposed Barstow Casino Moves Forward

All,


We came across this article from the Fourth of July weekend (though not connected to the MAGLEV project), it will have movement forward for possible additional jobs for the residents of the Barstow/Victorville area.


You can find all the details on from the Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno tribes website.
[...]
http://www.barstowcasinoproject.com/2011/07/barstow-casino-takes-step-forward/

Barstow casino takes step forward

On July 1, 2011, in News, by barstow

Desert Dispatch

Karen Jonas
STAFF WRITER

BARSTOW – Nearly a full decade after it was first proposed, an Indian gaming casino that would be located near the Barstow outlets has received a new breath of life after a draft environmental impact statement was released Friday.

The Los Coyotes Band of Cahuilla and Cupeno tribe — who have a reservation in San Diego County — first began plans for a casino near the Lenwood outlets in 2001. The project stalled in 2008 after the Department of Interior issued a memorandum that required off-reservation gaming casinos to be located within a “commutable distance” of the tribe’s reservation.

The application for the Los Coyotes casino in Barstow was rejected because of the new requirement, and the tribe filed another application in May 2008, said Suzanne Schaeffer — a lawyer working on the land trust application for the tribe.

Earlier this month, the Department of the Interior rescinded the memorandum and announced that it will move forward to process pending off-reservation gaming applications based on current federal law, according to a prepared statement from the Department of the Interior.

The Los Coyotes casino will have to undergo a “two-part” test in order to put the land – currently owned by BarWest Gaming, Inc. — into federal trust and allow the casino to be constructed, said Schaeffer. The tribe must prove that off-reservation gaming is in the best interest of the tribe and is not detrimental to the surrounding community and the governor also has to approve the project.

[...]

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Maglev Movie Monday (Sunday) "Der Transrapid"

All,


We are excited to be able to post the following informational video "Der Transrapid" featuring the Transrapid 07 model from 1988.  This video "showcased" and to "sell" the concept of MAGLEV to future buyers.  What's different with this video... it now has German to English translations!





Enjoy!


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