We’ve written about the need to bring real high-speed rail to the U.S. on many different occasions. Apparently the topic is a crowd pleaser (our analytics software shows that posts on high-speed rail are some of the most viewed). Well we’re doing it again and it’s not because of some shameless attempt to up our view count it’s because the Vice President announced yesterday a major plan to bring a high-speed rail network to the U.S.

Now there are some important details yet to be revealed (namely whether high-speed means 100 mph or 220 mph) and some important decisions to be made (should the funding be spread across the country or concentrated in areas with higher densities and therefore greater potential ridership like the Northeast Corridor?) but $53 billion shows a true commitment to making high-speed train travel a reality for the country.