LETTER: Here comes the train to Los Angeles

On Sunday, the Review-Journal’s Rick Velotta wrote an excellent review on the planning behind a rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas. A history of trains in these areas, however, does not bode well for its chances of success.

Decades ago, a mag-lev train was the first idea, but proponents didn’t come through with the funding and an electric-powered train proposal took its place. That idea was tried before in L.A. with the Red Cars of the ‘30s and ‘40s. But the love affair people have with their cars soon spelled doom for the Red Cars. The light-rail system now used in L.A. gets less than 10 percent of its funding from user fares, with the taxpayers picking up the rest.

If the current L.A. to Vegas Brightline train can be ready by the 2028 Olympics, the initial euphoria may generate some impressive early ridership. But don’t expect the long-term results to be anything more than another taxpayer-subsidized failed experiment.