VIDEO RELEASE: 3D Public Art Demonstrating Future California High-Speed Rail Service and The Portal Unveiled

October 7, 2024

SAN FRANCISCO – The California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) and Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) unveiled an interactive public art piece that provides a 3D representation of The Portal project, which will bring high-speed rail service to the multimodal Salesforce Transit Center.

Click image for video.

Dozens of transit enthusiasts and advocates unveiled the #ThePortalSFtoHSR installation outside the Salesforce Transit Center at Mission and Fremont Street.

The 3D interactive art piece allows people to peer 60 feet below ground, or two full levels into the train platform where riders could board a high-speed train and arrive in Los Angeles in under three hours. The public can take pictures with the installation, post them to their social media, and tag @cahsra and @transitcentersf with #ThePortalSFtoHSR.

“This interactive installation provides a rare glimpse into the existing two-level trainbox found in the basement of the Salesforce Transit Center waiting for trains to arrive through The Portal project. Thanks to a $3.38 billion commitment from the federal government, The Portal project is now over three-quarters funded. We invite the public to interact with this 3D art piece and envision the future of rail in uniting the Bay Area and connecting California.”

– Adam Van de Water, Executive Director, Transbay Joint Powers Authority

“The Golden Gate Bridge, cable cars, and the Ferry building are some of the iconic symbols people think of when they think of San Francisco. The Salesforce Transit Center, with high-speed rail and Caltrain in its basement, will be the next San Francisco transportation icon. It’s no longer a question of whether California will have a high-speed rail system but only how much of the high-speed rail system we want to have and how soon.”

– Boris Lipkin, Authority Northern California Regional Director

The Portal, also known as the Downtown Rail Extension, will extend Caltrain’s 77-mile service from San Francisco Fourth and King Street and the statewide high-speed rail system to the Transit Center in the heart of downtown San Francisco. This transformational infrastructure investment will ultimately connect 11 transit systems from the Bay Area and Southern California, bringing communities closer, reducing climate change impacts, and providing Bay Area residents with better access to jobs, housing, and economic opportunities.

For more information about The Portal, visit: https://www.tjpa.org/portaldtx.

The Authority has begun work to extend the 119 miles under construction to 171 miles of electrified high-speed rail from Merced to Bakersfield. Since the start of construction, the Authority has created nearly 14,000 construction jobs, with more than 70% going to residents from disadvantaged communities.

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