On April 16, 2009, President Barack Obama announced plans for a high-speed railway system in the U.S. saying it would create thousands of jobs and conserve energy. The system will "change the way we travel in America," said Obama and he identified $8 billion from the recently enacted economic stimulus package as a down payment on the rail system. The Administration's vision was further elaborated on in their April 2009 release of the "Vision of High Speed Rail in America" that begins to lay out a framework and process for the development of HSR. I believe that the President�s decision