Reid rejects Maglev’s claim that Washington is delaying the project

March 19, 2010

Washington, D.C. – Nevada Senator Harry Reid today sent a clear message to the taxpayer-funded maglev rail project: no one is stopping you from making progress. In the 30 years project advocates have been working to make maglev a reality, virtually nothing has been done to secure matching funds, let alone start construction.

“I have no ill will toward the people behind the maglev project and want it to be clear that no one, including me, is stopping them from moving ahead with their project,” Reid said. “During the many years I supported maglev, Congress made more than $50 million available, including a $45 million appropriation in 2008. We are now well into 2010 and maglev has failed to come up with the 20 percent match needed to obtain these federal funds, which is why I reprogrammed the $45 million for a transportation project in southern Nevada that will actually create jobs right away. While Nevadans are rightfully impressed with the maglev technology, they, like me, just want to see something get done. DesertXpress is ready to break ground and put Nevadans back to work this year.”

Maglev representatives make the wildly inaccurate claim that their project will immediately create 90,000 jobs. It’s time to look at maglev’s 30-year record of failure and consider the facts. Maglev hasn’t started one of the most basic requirements for a project like this, the environmental impact statement (EIS). After three decades, completing the EIS is the least they could have accomplished. It takes years to complete an EIS and issue a Record of Decision that would allow construction to begin. Even if the maglev project had the funding and was able to begin their EIS today, it would only be for the first leg of the project – from Las Vegas to Primm, a distance of less than 40 miles.

Reid now supports DesertXpress, a privately-funded project, because it has made more progress in the last several years than maglev has made in three decades without spending taxpayer dollars, and can be built at a third of the cost. The EIS for DesertXpress is expected to be completed this summer and they are ready to break ground this year – which means jobs for Nevadans this year. The first leg of this high-speed rail project will run from Las Vegas to Victorville, CA. From there, it will run to Palmdale where it will connect with California’s high-speed rail network, giving Nevadans and Californians another high-speed method of transportation.

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MAGLEV: MORE THAN A DAY LATE, MORE THAN A DOLLAR SHORT

Despite many years of funding and support, the Maglev project has failed to deliver for Nevadans.

Maglev: Years Later, Little To Show.  Just this past January, the Las Vegas Sun reported, “Although DesertXpress is on the verge of breaking ground, the same can’t be said of the magnetic levitation train project proposed by the American Magline Group on behalf of the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission. Neil Cummings, who has been working for years to get the maglev project on track, was excited about his chances late last summer when it appeared his company was on the verge of getting started with some of the environmental approvals and engineering needed to build the first leg from Las Vegas to Primm. But since July, there’s been a disconnect that has left the maglev waiting at the station.” [Las Vegas Sun, 1/15/10, emphasis added]

Maglev: Completion Of First Part – From Las Vegas To PRIMM - Still Years Away. “Officials with the maglev project, a private and public partnership, say they can start construction as soon as 2011 on their demonstration project that would go from Las Vegas to Primm. The extension from Primm to Anaheim, Calif., wouldn't be finished until 2016. Maglev officials are applying for $1.8 billion in federal stimulus money to fund the demonstration project. Federal loans and private investment would account for the remaining $10 billion.” [Las Vegas Review-Journal, 7/16/09]

Last Summer, Maglev Was “Just Beginning Its Environmental Study Process.” In June 2009, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, “But maglev has its own problems, beginning with a price of about $12 billion. It is also just beginning its environmental study process, which puts it behind DesertXpress' time line. And the first phase, which would cost about $1.8 billion, would only go from Las Vegas to Primm, home to three casinos, a roller coaster, an outlet mall and little else. The maglev group is also dependent on raising money in the debt markets, which have little appetite for unproven transportation proposals.” [Las Vegas Review-Journal, 6/28/09]

Ø  Environmental Impact Statement “Can Take Years To Complete.”  In 2009, Maglev sought $45 million from the 2008 federal transportation bill to complete their environmental impact study. “An environmental impact statement is needed before construction on any federally funded transportation project moves forward. The process can take years to complete.” DesertXpress at the time were in the midst of the environmental impact statement for their project. [Las Vegas Review-Journal, 7/3/09]

Even CHINA And Germany Know Maglev Trains Have Significant Environmental Impact. China also attempting to construct a maglev train but “radiation and noise concerns” have slowed the project down. “The State Council gave a go-ahead to the extension in 2006, but radiation and noise concerns, and residents' fears that they would lose their property along the planned route, prompted authorities to suspend the project in 2007. The line was originally due to be finished before the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai. Safety and cost concerns have become major reasons for other countries, including Germany, where the technology was born, to suspend Maglev train projects. Germany has called a halt to three major Maglev projects, including the Hamburg-Berlin, Metrorapid, and Munich airport link projects, due to cost concerns. [Global Times, 3/18/10]

Maglev Spends Money On TV Ads Trying To “Convince The Locals” There’s “A Real Train.”  “Beginning this week, media spots will be airing in southern Nevada to help convince the locals that this maglev train plan is the real deal and could begin construction next year.  A second TV ad hones in on what might be the train's most salient selling point right now -- jobs. ‘The reason we want to do the advertising campaign is because we want people to see it. We want them to understand that this is a real train,’ said Cummings.” [KLAS, 9/1/09]

Ø  More Nevadans Oppose Maglev Than Support It. Last year the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported “that a survey found 42 percent of registered voters contacted last week supported a proposed magnetic levitation train to Anaheim, Calif. Forty-nine percent of the 500 people queried statewide opposed the $12 billion "maglev" project, which would whisk passengers between Las Vegas and the Disneyland area at some 300 mph. Another 9 percent were undecided.” [AP, 10/12/09]

Maglev Relies On Federal Funds.  “The developers of one of Nevada’s proposed rail lines, the privately financed Desert Xpress, have said they don’t want government money. But the other — the proposed maglev, or magnetic levitation, line — desperately does. [Las Vegas Sun, 6/5/09]

Maglev Had Access To $45 Million In Funds In 2008 They Were Suppose To Match…Never Did.  “Last July, the Federal Railroad Administration approved the Nevada Transportation Department’s scope of work for the use of $45 million authorized by the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users legislation. Cummings said required matching funds have been committed by American Magline Group and the money would be used to obtain environmental approvals, raise construction spending and begin work on the Las Vegas-Primm segment.”  [Las Vegas Sun, 1/15/10]

Federal Study Finds Maglev is an Uneconomical Project. According to the non-partisan Government Accountability Office, Maglev is projected to cost $44.9 million per mile in construction costs. By comparison, Desert Xpress was estimated to cost $19.5 million per mile in construction costs. Also, The estimated project costs of over $12 billion makes Maglev the highest among the three high speed rail options. [GAO-09-317]

Federal Study Finds Maglev Will Not General Enough Money. According to the According to the non-partisan Government Accountability Office, Maglev will only generate $517.4 million in revenue by 2025. By comparison Desert Xpress was forecast to general $1.2 billion by 2030. [GAO-09-317]