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Allred, Johnson Lead Colleagues in Expressing Continued Support for Texas Central High-Speed Rail Project

January 12, 2022

The Representatives urged the Texas Supreme Court to affirm that Texas Central is a railroad and an interurban electric railway under Texas law

Washington, D.C. –  Congressman Colin Allred (TX-32) and Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30), members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, led a group of Texas representatives in urging the Texas Supreme Court to affirm the Thirteenth Court of Appeals and allow the Texas Central High-Speed Rail project to move forward.

“We urge you to reject efforts to undermine this effort to develop the nation’s first true high-speed passenger rail system. This project will be a catalyst for continued economic growth in our region and the great State of Texas. Considering the importance of this to our constituents and the state, we strongly support this project and urge you to affirm the ruling of the Court of Appeals,”  the members wrote to the Texas Supreme Court.

Allred has long been supportive of the high-speed rail project that would connect Dallas and Houston, create jobs and help grow the Texas economy. In 2019, Allred and Johnson led their colleagues from both sides of the aisle in writing to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board urging them to support the project.

Allred and Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX-30) were joined by Reps. Al Green (D-TX-09) and Marc Veasey (D-TX-33).

Read the full letter below or download a copy here:  Texas Central Amicus Letter_01.11.22.pdf

To the Honorable Justices of the Texas Supreme Court:

As members of Congress representing Texas, we write to express our strong support for the Texas Central High-Speed Rail project and ask that you affirm the Thirteenth Court of Appeals holding that Texas Central is a railroad and an interurban electric railway under Texas law. 

The Texas Central High-Speed Rail project will connect Dallas and Houston -- two of the largest, and fastest growing -- metropolitan regions in the nation. Unbelievably, these regions are not currently serviced by direct passenger rail service. Once completed, this high-speed rail system will connect Dallas and Houston in less than 90 minutes and at speeds up to 205 mph. Currently, travel times along Interstate 45 between North Texas and Houston can exceed 5 hours and are expected to exceed 6.5 hours by 2035. Texas High-Speed Rail will provide a new travel option for our constituents and other travelers in this corridor, mitigate highway congestion, and will be a major part of the future of transportation in Texas.

Texas Central has made significant progress in securing the necessary Federal regulatory actions to advance this project. The Federal Railroad Administration has published a rule to establish safety standards and completed the environmental review process for the project. The Surface Transportation Board has asserted jurisdiction over the project. These Federal actions demonstrate the United States government’s commitment to advancing this important project and bringing it closer to becoming reality.

In advancing this project, Texas Central has invested millions of dollars in developing the project and has hired some of the leading design and construction firms in the world – and done so without state or Federal funds. This project is expected to provide a new mobility option between Dallas and Houston, while generating more than $36 billion in economic impact on the economy of Texas and creating over 17,000 jobs during the construction phase of the project alone. 

We urge you to reject efforts to undermine this effort to develop the nation’s first true high-speed passenger rail system. This project will be a catalyst for continued economic growth in our region and the great State of Texas. Considering the importance of this to our constituents and the state, we strongly support this project and urge you to affirm the ruling of the Court of Appeals. Failure to do so will undermine this critical project and could also have a significant negative impact on the ability of future efforts to develop new railroads in the State of Texas. This would have a lasting impact on our State’s economy. 

There are no fees and costs associated with submitting this letter and certify that a copy of this letter has been served upon all parties by electronic filing.  

Thank you for your consideration in this matter. 

Sincerely,