Washington, D.C.--President Obama and Vice President Biden will travel to Tampa, Florida today to announce $8 billion in funding for high-speed rail projects across the country.  Areas and routes receiving funding include: Chicago to St. Louis to Kansas City, Minneapolis/St. Paul to Madison to Milwaukee to Chicago, California, Charlotte to Raleigh to Richmond to Washington D.C., Cleveland to Columbus to Dayton to Cincinnati, Iowa, Ft. Worth, Eugene to Portland to Seattle to Vancouver, Pontiac to Detroit to Chicago, Tampa to Orlando to Miami, and the Northeast corridor.  Fact sheets and other details on the specific projects listed above can be found at: 
http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-and-releases

The Sierra Club offered the following comments in response to this announcement.

Statement of Ann Mesnikoff, Director of Sierra Club's 21st Century Transportation Program

"Fresh off last night's State of the Union address, President Obama is already living up to his pledge to help rescue, restore, and rebuild America and the middle class with unprecedented investments in job creation through clean energy and smart infrastructure. 

"Today's announcement is an exciting step toward building the kind of 21st century transportation infrastructure that America needs and deserves.  These high-speed rail projects will put tens of thousands of Americans to work on important projects across the country. High speed rail will provide a needed transportation choice for Americans that is fast and convenient and will reduce carbon emissions and air pollution and cut our dangerous dependence on oil.

"The scale of these investments is impressive and dovetails with the administration's strong commitment to cleaner, smarter transportation.  We are encouraged that this long overdo effort represents just the first step in an ambitious initiative that will benefit our environment, our economy, and our security."