SoCal To Vegas High-Speed Train One Step Closer To Reality

Business moguls, Las Vegas casino executives, and high-ranking politicians have been talking about it for years. Many have tried, but failed, to build a high-speed railway system connecting Southern California and Las Vegas. However, Brightline has now secured $3 billion dollars in federal funding to build that high-speed train.

At this point in time, Brightline is already operating a high-speed train service in South Florida. That railway system, Brightline Florida, connects Miami to Orlando. That route includes “stops in West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, and Aventura.” That’s according to GoBrightline.com. Now, this same company is creating Brightline West in order to build a rail system connecting Southern California and Las Vegas.

According to BrightlineWest.com, the proposed high-speed train will cover 218 miles of track. The purpose is to get more cars off the road and relieve the congestion on I-15 between the two locations. I’m sure you saw news reports of the long backups on that freeway after Formula One weekend and Thanksgiving weekend.

Moreover, this will be an all-electric railway system, similar to the one currently operating in South Florida. In fact, Brightline boasts that these trains can travel at speeds in excess of 186 miles per hour. Of course, plans call for a state-of-the-art train station in Las Vegas. The proposed station will be located on Las Vegas Boulevard South between Warm Springs and Blue Diamond Road. That’s per an article by Justin Walker on 8NewsNow.com.

The Brightline West train expects to make stops along the way in “Apple Valley, Hesperia, and Rancho Cucamonga.” Furthermore, the stop in Rancho Cucamonga easily connects with “Southern California’s regional Metrolink service, allowing for seamless connectivity into downtown Los Angeles and beyond.” That’s all per BrightlineWest.com.

Then today (Tuesday, December 5^th), Democratic Nevada Senator Jacky Rosen revealed news that the Brightline high-speed train project gained $3 billion dollars in funding by way of the “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.” That’s according to the article by Justin Walker on 8NewsNow.com.

That article goes on to quote Rosen’s press release, which states the proposed high-speed train system will “bolster tourism, create 35,000 good-paying jobs, ease traffic on Interstate 15, and reduce more than 400,000 tons of carbon emissions each year.”

Well, now that dream of a high-speed train connecting Southern California and Las Vegas is one step closer to becoming reality.

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Well, it's shaping up to be a pretty big year in Las Vegas for visitors from outside of the state. People are coming to our neighborhood for all kinds of reasons. Brand new gaming venues are opening. Music festivals are happening throughout the year. Sporting events are becoming more and more plentiful. And now there's another reason for tourists to put Sin City on their list of places to see. Many travel websites, like Kayak, just released a list of the cheapest places to travel to in 2023. And Las Vegas is on it.

Kayak made the list based on a variety of factors. First was who had the cheapest flights. We know specials are offered all the time on flights to Vegas. Especially these smaller airlines like Frontier, Allegiant and Spirit. I've flown from Vegas to California, Washington, Utah and Montana for very low fares.

The second factor Kayak considered was the price of hotels. Again, we have specials all the time in Las Vegas. And with rewards programs at our casinos, there's a lot of money to be saved on lodging here. Add in our time shares and AirBnbs and you've got a lot of the cheapest options for visitors coming here.

The final considerations Kayak included in their list are which destinations on the web get the most searches. Also travel restrictions and security concerns in each area searched. 

So where does Las Vegas land on the list of cheapest places to travel to? We took only the cities in the United States to put on our list. And, thanks to Travel and Leisure, we've gathered the average cost of flight and hotel it takes to travel to each place. Check out where Las Vegas falls on this list of top 13 cheapest places in the United States to travel to in 2023. – Wendy Rush

Average cost of flight and hotel is $569.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $593.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $623.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $624.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $625.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $630.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $632.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $635.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $645.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $657.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $658.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $658.

Average cost of flight and hotel is $832.

Larry Martino is the long-time afternoon drive personality on 96.3 KKLZ. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of Larry Martino and not necessarily those of Beasley Media Group, LLC.

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