The X Train: Transportation With Style
Travel Tips, What's New — By thmeeks on June 28, 2010 at 11:06 pm
Since Las Vegas is so close to Southern California—it’s only 270 miles from Las Vegas to downtown Los Angeles—it’s not surprising that about a quarter of all Las Vegas visitors hail from SoCal. Interstate 15 is the main traffic arterial between the two regions, and theoretically, if little or no traffic were on the road, a driver could make the drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas in about four hours. (And while we’re waving our magic traffic wand to make online driving times match real driving times, we’ll also get rid of all the road construction.) In reality, the drive between LA and LV is often closer to six hours. When Friday rolls around and thousands of people in both states hit the road for weekend getaways, I15 starts to look like a parking lot. Add a couple of highway accidents, and your nerves are shot before you’ve reached your destination.
Union Station, Los Angeles
For years, developers in both California and Nevada have talked about establishing train service between SoCal and Las Vegas. Next year, travelers may get to make the trip between LA and LV without the hassles of traffic jams on I15. The X Train will not only do the driving for you, it will transport you in style. Departing from Union Station in downtown Los Angeles with a stop in Orange County, the X Train intends to transform the five and half hour journey to Vegas into a fun-filled five and half-hour trip. This luxury train will offer a bar and food, and celebrity Chef Rick Moonen’s company will be in charge of the train’s food and beverage operations. The plush interior design of the X Train should give riders not only a stress-free ride, but a plush one as well.
Look for the X Train’s service to begin some time in 2011. Round-trip fares are expected to be $99.00.
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Photo of traffic courtesy of Daniel R. Blume
Photo of Union Station courtesy of Andy Walker
Photo of train at Cajon Pass courtesy of Doug Wertman
8 Comments
Yes, this all sound very true and optimistic,
but…
I’m ready to see some action!!
Besides endless talks, followed by more talks, followed by studies, followed by more studies, I still don’t see a train to Vegas…
(and nothing still appears on the horizon)
Moreover, the latest I heard was that Union Pacific was not willing to share its tracks with ANY passenger trains… I would like to see an update regarding this issue, as Union Pathetic (oops, I mean Pacific) seems to be the biggest obstacle to launching the train from LA to LV.
Wrong Alek, the poblem is NOT the UP — or any other railroad.
The REAL PROBLEM IS a lack of REAL money on the part of the promoters m– any of them. That is not going to change for this train or any other. And, that means it will be a cold day in August in LV before you are able to ride the ‘X’ Train or any of its brethern (HSR or SSR).
BTW, If the ‘X’ Train can actually produce a seat at $99 round trip with the amenity package thay are presenting, then buy all you can because it is a DEAL. Even Southwest can’t get their prices that low!
However, that said, I wish Good Luck to all.
TWG
For as long as I can remember, there’s been talk about train service between LA and LV–and I’ve lived here all my life. The current crop of contenders–of which X Train is one–are coming closer than any previous proposals. All of the high speed projects require construction, which is a big hurdle to overcome–financially, especially (doubly so since the high-speed trains currently on the table did not receive any grants from the feds). And let’s not even talk about the EIS. At least for X Train, they don’t have to start from scratch. I believe it’s a supply and demand situation. In prior years, when gas was cheap and the drive on I15 was crowded but bearable, SoCal tourists found it easy to jump in the car and brave the drive. In those days, no one was that interested in a train because the tourists still came–thus, not much demand. In this economy, visitor numbers are down. Gas is expensive. I15 turns into a parking lot. Demand is increasing. And casinos do not like to lose customers.
@Tom, I agreee with you on the $99 round-trip–when I first heard it, it sounded too good to be true, so I confirmed it with the X Train folks before I published it. Many share your feelings that LV-LA train service is about as likely as the proverbial snowballs in hell, probably beause we’ve heard about it for so many years but have nothing to show for it. Yet.
Last month, the LV Sun published a wrap-up of the five competing train proposals:
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/jun/04/time-update-your-train-score-card-new-player/
I’ll be sure to keep the blog updated with progress on the X Train.
Yes, this all sound very true and optimistic,
but…
I’m ready to see some action!!
Besides endless talks, followed by more talks, followed by studies, followed by more studies, I still don’t see a train to Vegas…
(and nothing still appears on the horizon)
Moreover, the latest I heard was that Union Pacific was not willing to share its tracks with ANY passenger trains… I would like to see an update regarding this issue, as Union Pathetic (oops, I mean Pacific) seems to be the biggest obstacle to launching the train from LA to LV.
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