$5 Billion More Headed to High-Speed Rail

Counting the $8 billion in the stimulus bill, plus this $5 billion included in the Fed. budget, it brings the total to a whopping $13 billion allocated towards finally bringing the USA passenger rail system into the 21st century. Like his hero Abraham Lincoln, it appears President Barack Obama wants to make rail a centerpiece of his administration.

US Plan Includes $5 Billion Over 5 Years For High-Speed Rail

By Josh Mitchell Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- The budget plan unveiled by U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday boosts spending on high-speed passenger rail service, an early priority of the administration.
Obama proposes spending $5 billion over five years on a program that provides grants to states to invest in "high-speed" rail. That would be on top of the $8 billion over two years for high-speed rail in the economic stimulus package. And it would be separate from the federal government's annual subsidy to Amtrak.
The administration said in a brief description that the new money would help states create "several high-speed rail corridors" linking "regional population centers" across the country. Money in an existing state grant program typically goes into new tracks, signals and stations to improve existing popular routes.
The new investment, the administration states, would mark "a new federal commitment to give the traveling public a practical and environmentally sustainable alternative to flying or driving."

I couldn't be happier.