Designated High-Speed Rail Corridors Map
(click on the map for a larger view)

Overview: Section 1010 of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) established a special program to fund safety improvements at highway-rail grade crossings on corridors that were “designated” as high-speed intercity passenger rail corridors based on their present utility and their potential for future development. This grade crossing safety program is codified at 23 U.S.C. 104(d)(2).

Current Status of Designations: At present, up to eleven corridors are authorized for designation, of which the Secretary of Transportation and/or the Congress have designated the ten corridors that are shown in green on the map. A full corridor chronology is available of the designations and modifications since 1992.  Of the designated corridors, three were specifically named by Congress in law. The other seven were selected by the Secretary of Transportation in a competitive process, which in current law involves an evaluation of such factors as projected ridership, public benefits, and anticipated partnership participation of States, localities, and the freight railroads.

Status of the Northeast Corridor: Linking Boston, New York, Washington, and intermediate cities, Amtrak's Northeast Corridor (NEC) main line (shown in a heavy line on the map) is America's most highly-developed rail corridor, having benefited from over $4 billion in direct Federal funding under the Northeast Corridor Improvement Project that had its roots in the High-Speed Ground Transportation (HSGT) Act of 1965 and the railroad restructuring legislation of the mid-1970s. Development of the NEC began some 27 years prior to the first designations under the ISTEA high-speed rail grade crossing improvement program. By 1992, the NEC had already undergone extensive renewal and upgrading, and was already free of grade crossings south of New York and largely free of them to the north. Thus, there was no reason to “designate” it under what was essentially a grade crossing upgrading program. Accordingly, the NEC main line is not a "designated high-speed rail corridor."

DESIGNATED HIGH-SPEED RAIL CORRIDORS:

California Corridor

Pacific Northwest Corridor

South Central Corridor

Gulf Coast Corridor

Chicago Hub Network

Florida Corridor

Southeast Corridor

Keystone Corridor

Empire Corridor

Northern New England Corridor