Grimshaw create stations for new line connecting Las Vegas to Southern California
Brightline West has officially broken ground in Las Vegas, marking the beginning of the journey to high-speed rail in the United States. With stations designed by Tenderstream member Grimshaw, the system will transform the way in which people travel by providing a legitimate alternative to car and air travel. The timely ground breaking ceremony took place on Earth Day - underscoring the project’s impact in cutting 800 million pounds of carbon pollution a year - and was attended by a number of public officials, including U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
The 218-mile system will be constructed in the middle of state highway I-15, and is based on Brightline’s vision to connect city pairs that are too short to fly and too far to drive. Grimshaw's designs take their cue from the landscape, with Las Vegas Station envisioned as an extension of the surrounding desert, sitting approximately at the current elevation of the dry channel “arroyo” that is planned to function as a sunken linear park. As an intermediate stop, Victor Valley features a design that embraces the vast open spaces of the Mojave Desert, manifesting as a sculpted piece of land art, with the surrounding terrain manipulated to define and cradle the building. Designed as an intermodal hub, Rancho Cucamonga Station will accommodate a variety of transportation methods, including personal vehicles, ride shares, Brightline+ shuttle service, and direct connection to the San Bernadino Metrolink line.
The line was recently awarded US$3 billion in funding from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, in addition to private funding of US$3.5 billion in private activity bonds from USDOT. “People have been dreaming of high-speed rail in America for decades – and now, with billions of dollars of support made possible by President Biden’s historic infrastructure law, it’s finally happening,” said Secretary Buttigieg. “Partnering with state leaders and Brightline West, we’re writing a new chapter in our country’s transportation story that includes thousands of union jobs, new connections to better economic opportunity, less congestion on the roads, and less pollution in the air.”
Brightline West is scheduled for completion in time for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
Lucy Nordberg
Tenderstream Head of Research
This tender was first published by Tenderstream on 27.01.2021 here
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