Las Cruces state Sen. Bill Soules may not realize his dream of a high-speed train in New Mexico during this legislative session, but he is eager to lay the foundation to move in that direction.
“New Mexico has opportunities with the large influx of money and particularly non-recurring money to spend on infrastructure,” Soules told KRQE. “We ought to be looking up and out to what we want for our state 20 years out and use that infrastructure money to build toward a different future.”
Soules, a Democrat, hopes to get approval for a feasibility study, noting, “See whether this would be something that would have economic benefit to the state in the next 20 years.”
The feasibility study would be based on a high-speed train that would run from Denver through New Mexico to Chihuahua, Mexico, traveling between 150 and 200 mph, KRQE said.
Soules has written a proposal that estimates $1 billion for the train project, though a feasibility study would give a more detailed estimate of how much it would actually cost. The study, if lawmakers approve, will cost $500,000.
Sen. Cliff Pirtle (R-Roswell) called Soules’ ideas “pipe dreams,” arguing the money should be spent on updating the state's current infrastructure.
“There’s a ton of things that we would like to have all across the state, including in my area," Pirtle told KRQE. "But we really have to focus on the things that will really bring up the quality of life for our New Mexico residents and citizens before we start looking at pipe dreams such as this,”
Pirtle said he would like to see tourist dollars spent within the state rather on those just passing through by train.