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By Theo Burman
Live News Reporter
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Vice President Kamala Harris has shown support previously for investment in high-speed rail in California, which could indicate what her administration's stance would be.
In both her work as a senator and as California's attorney general, Harris took steps to support high-speed rail development, which was also reflected in her work as vice president in the Biden administration.
High-speed rail has long been a point of interest for President Joe Biden's White House, which has allocated significant funding towards its development. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, signed by Biden in 2021, included a $66 billion investment for rail, one of the largest since the creation of Amtrak, with the goal of enhancing rail safety and efficiency, and reducing travel times.
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During her run for the Senate in 2016, Harris said that she was in favor of high-speed rail "as part of a broader strategy to invest in our future," and that she wanted expansion to be monitored for "cost overruns and delays."
Since then, Harris has only grown more supportive of infrastructure investment. In 2017, she listed transportation as one of the most significant issues facing America, saying: "Infrastructure spending isn't a transportation issue for most Americans — it's a human rights issue.
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"The reality is that in a lot of places in our country where people cannot afford to live where they work."
Once in the Senate, Harris, earned a spot on the Environment and Public Works Committee, a position which she used to support the Caltrain Electrification Project, a $1.9 billion attempt to upgrade rail infrastructure in Silicon Valley.
Talking about the project at the time, Harris said: "We are talking about thousands of jobs and infrastructure concerns that California has around transportation."
In April this year, some of the first infrastructure funding from the Biden-Harris administration came through in the form of a $3 billion package given to Brightline West. The investment hopes to run zero emission, fully electric trains capable of speeds of 200 miles per hour.
Harris' home state of California is often at the top of discussions when it comes to high-speed rail. With several large financial centers and the largest population in the U.S., it is arguably the state most in need of greater rail investment.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority recently announced new progress with overcrossings in Mountain View Avenue and Floral Avenue in Fresno County, as part of a plan to connect San Francisco and Los Angeles via the Central Valley.
Newsweek contacted the Harris campaign for comment on the vice president's position.
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