TRAVEL
How to Get to Near High-Speed Rail—on the Cheap

A transit expert says travel times on the Northeast Corridor could be significantly slashed with simple fixes like smarter scheduling and faster station approaches

By William Boston
Aug. 16, 2025 at 10:00 am ET

Illustration of a high-speed train emerging from a tunnel.
ILLUSTRATION: MATT CHINWORTH

Forget flashy bullet trains and gazillion-dollar tunnels: Alon Levy, a fellow at the NYU Marron Institute of Urban Management, says America’s railways could reduce travel times and transform intercity trips with simpler, far cheaper fixes.

In a new study, Levy and co-authors make the case that with a combination of smarter scheduling, new track switches that allow trains to approach stations at faster speeds and a fleet of modern electric trains, the Northeast Corridor connecting Boston to Washington, D.C., could be Humming with near high-speed rail service.

{paywall}

How to Build High-Speed Rail on the Northeast Corridor

{snip}