Addressing High Speed Rail (HSR) transportation development in the United States, this work serves as a blueprint for such development. It provides an in-depth evaluation of the different systems and their inherent linkage to other transportation modes, their potential costs, financing options, system benefits, the current level of use and success of HSR and Maglev elsewhere in the world, the current state of thinking on these systems in the US and their prospects for further efficient and environmentally benign economic growth. While technical descriptions of each system are included, the book deals comprehensively with the feasibility of such systems in Europe and in the US.