U.S. Cancels $63.9M Amtrak Grant for Dallas-Houston Shinkansen-Style Rail; $40B Project May Seek Private Investment

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Updated Apr 15, 2025, 05:42 PM

The U.S. Department of Transportation, under the Trump administration, has canceled a $63.9 million federal grant awarded to Amtrak for the Amtrak Texas High-Speed Rail Corridor, intended to connect Dallas and Houston with a 240-mile, 205 mph rail line modeled on Japan's Shinkansen technology. The decision was made in agreement with the Federal Railroad Administration and Amtrak. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the project as a "risky venture" and "a waste of taxpayer funds," citing ballooning capital costs now believed to exceed $40 billion, compared to earlier estimates of $12 billion and $30 billion. The project, originally proposed as a private venture in 2009, had become increasingly reliant on federal funding as costs rose. The Texas Central project aimed to reduce travel time between Dallas and Houston to less than 90 minutes, with stations planned at The Cedars in Dallas and Northwest Mall in Houston, and one stop in Grimes County. The train was expected to depart every 30 minutes during peak periods and hourly during off-peak times. However, the project has faced persistent challenges, including land acquisition issues—only about 25-30% of required parcels, or roughly 1,600 parcels including 500 single-family homes, have been secured as of September 2024—and changes in ownership. Amtrak and the Department of Transportation stated that terminating the grant would save over $60 million in taxpayer funds and allow Amtrak to focus on improving its existing services. The canceled funds will be reallocated to other transportation projects. FRA Chief Counsel Kyle Fields said the move recognizes that federalizing the Texas Central Railway proposal is not the best use of taxpayer funding. Kleinheinz Capital Partners, led by John Kleinheinz and now the lead investor in Texas Central, expressed support for the decision, stating the project should proceed as a private-sector initiative. The company maintains that the project is shovel-ready and could generate significant jobs and economic growth for Texas. Despite the loss of federal funding, the high-speed rail line could still move forward with private investment. The Texas Supreme Court has previously ruled that Texas Central qualifies as a public interurban electric railway company, granting it eminent domain authority, though the project continues to face opposition from landowners and state legislators.

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#Trump #Amtrak #Dallas #Houston #Japan #Shinkansen #Federal Railroad Administration #Sean Duffy #Texas Central #The Cedars #Northwest Mall #Grimes County #Department of Transportation #Kyle Fields #Texas Central Railway #Kleinheinz Capital Partners #John Kleinheinz #Texas #Texas Supreme Court

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Sources

dallasnews.com(3)foxnews.com(2)kcentv.com(2)fox4news.com(2)

Economic Times

@EconomicTimes

$60 million of taxpayer money saved as DoT cancels #Texas #HighSpeedRail contract 🇺🇸 Catch the day's latest news and updates ➠ https://t.co/F326wSvOMM https://t.co/dS9GUOPxz4

KVUE News

@KVUE

The Trump administration announced that the Federal Railroad Administration and Amtrak agreed to cancel a $63.9 million federal grant for the proposed Texas Central route that would have linked Dallas and Houston by high-speed rail. https://t.co/52416KUfVW