In the $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed by the U.S. Senate, just $66 billion was proposed for rail infrastructure over eight years and $39 billion for public transit over eight years.

To get a sense of these numbers, Alphabet’s revenue in a single year, 2020, was over $180 billion. The American Society of Civil Engineers rates U.S. transit infrastructure at D-minus, with the backlog for transit projects at $176 billion and the backlog for passenger rail at $45 billion. This public investment is vital for maintaining and upgrading the existing rail infrastructure, yet the allocations still fall short for building out a competitive high-speed rail network.

Even as corporate net-zero pledges and climate funds abound, there seems to be little attention paid to investing in electric rail. Shipping is having its moment with bankers pledging to help decarbonize the sector. Electric cars and trucks are viewed with increasing optimism by major automakers. Even aviation — one of the most difficult modes of transport to decarbonize — has seen breakthroughs in electrification and zero emissions efforts.

What about rail? As a soft indicator, since 2018, there has been literally one article per year on rail on GreenBiz.

High-speed rail lines, which can be used for both passenger travel and freight service, are generally characterized by speeds of at least 200 miles per hour — providing convenience, safety, lower environmental impact and higher community benefits when compared to driving. At these speeds, high-speed rail services exist in over 20 countries.

The United States has zero. The fastest rail system in the U.S. is the Amtrak Acela Express along the Northeast Corridor (NEC), with speeds of up to 150 miles per hour but with averages around 66 mph. Even though not yet high-speed, Amtrak claims that traveling by the Amtrak NEC train produces 83 percent less carbon emissions than driving alone and up to 73 percent less than flying. Since 2021, the rail company has provided trip-specific carbon emissions savings to NEC customers.

Read the full article about investing in high-speed rail by Marilyn Waite at GreenBiz.