One day in the late 2020s, if the folks at Brightline West deliver on their promised high-speed rail between Southern California and Las Vegas, you'll be able to order a drink while riding toward the Strip.
And apparently you'll be drinking that drink in a train car that might remind you of the inside of a spaceship.
Brightline West, the rail company that has begun building a high-speed train between Southern California and Las Vegas and aims to finish it in time for the 2028 Olympics, has awarded a construction contract and released a rendering of the designs for the lounge cars for the route.
Antonio Castelan, a spokesman for Brightline West, said the passenger cars will be pet-friendly and feature charging ports at every seat, free Wi-Fi, carry-on luggage storage, and bikes and restrooms that will provide “an innovative hands-free experience.”
Renderings suggest the rooms will be sleek and understated, perhaps with a minimalist design to match the desert outside.
“With bold fuchsia interiors and a luxurious ambiance, it is the perfect space to relax, uncork a glass of champagne and enjoy the journey from Las Vegas to California in style,” the company suggested in a Recent post on X(Responses included a brief debate over the definition of “deep fuchsia.”)
Production of the train cars is set to begin in 2026 at a Siemens Mobility plant in Horseheads, New York.
Brightline West is building a rail line between Rancho Cucamonga and Las Vegas. Here's the company's rendering of a lounge car.
(Rendering of Brightline West)
Brightline West officials have said the trains, which run on electricity, will be able to reach speeds of up to 200 mph and will travel 218 miles from Las Vegas to a station in Rancho Cucamonga in about two hours. Rancho Cucamonga, in San Bernardino County, is about 41 miles east of Los Angeles.
Brightline West, whose parent company currently operates trains connecting several Florida cities, broke ground on the Las Vegas route on April 22. The trains will run down the middle of Interstate 15 and transport passengers in about half the time it would take to drive.
The Brightline West initiative has $3 billion in backing from the Biden administration and access to an additional $3.5 billion in tax-exempt bonds. The remainder of the cost, estimated at $12 billion in total, will be raised through private investors. Company officials have said the upstate New York site will create about 300 jobs.
Between Las Vegas and Rancho Cucamonga, the system will have stations in Victor Valley and Hesperia, California. Plans call for the Rancho Cucamonga end of the route to connect to existing public transit, including Metrolink near Ontario International Airport.
Amtrak's last passenger train service between Los Angeles and Las Vegas was cancelled in the 1990s due to budget cuts.
