The Route
From Victorville, a completely separate, dedicated two-track passenger railway would be constructed, largely following the north side or median of I-15, making maximum use of excess freeway right-of-way, and minimizing the impact upon the largely undeveloped land alongside the highway. There will be no grade crossings, thereby maximizing speed and safety.
Approximately 170 miles of the route will be primarily alongside or in some sections, within the median of Interstate I-15, with approximately 30 miles between Victorville and Barstow being evaluated for both a freeway alignment and an alignment alongside existing rail rights of way. Therefore, the majority of the track would utilize public rights of way, on property owned by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), with easements permitted for transportation use to Caltrans and NDOT for I-15.
Two passenger stations are proposed, one in Victorville located along the west side of I-15 between the North and South junctions with the Stoddard Wells Road interchanges on about 60 acres of land, plus parking, and the other station in Las Vegas at one of three possible locations designed to interface with proposed extensions of the Las Vegas Monorail™, with shuttles serving the resorts and the central business district.
Access to the Victorville station would be from the two existing Stoddard Wells Road interchanges and the planned E-220 interchanges. The 50-acre train maintenance and storage facility and operations center will be located near the station, also within the Victor Valley Economic Development Area.
The maintenance facility would include the operations control center, a fueling station, train washing facility, repair shop, parts storage, trains storage tracks, meeting rooms and administrative offices.
In Las Vegas, the line will be conveniently located close to the airport, the Strip, and downtown Las Vegas. In addition, if desired by the resort owners at Primm, located adjacent to the state line, a station could be provided to accommodate separate excursion trains operating to and from Las Vegas.
Why Victorville?
Of course it would be great if DesertXpress could be extended to downtown Los Angeles, Anaheim and Ontario, and someday it might. But for this initial project, it is critical for the station to serve the Southern California market and be financeable without public tax dollars.
Victorville makes a lot of sense because it is the first major population center northeast of the Cajon Pass through the San Bernardino mountain range separating the High Desert from the Los Angeles basin. Victorville is within only a 30- to 45-minute drive for roughly 5 million people who live in the Inland Empire, Antelope Valley, and the eastern portions of Los Angeles County, and only a one to two hour's drive for most of the rest of the Southland's 21 million residents—many of whom routinely drive at least an hour to and from work each weekday.
Victorville also is the choke point of I-15, where the roadway narrows from from four through lanes to three in each direction. With the station in Victorville, DesertXpress avoids the uncertainty of the challenging 200-mile drive across the Mojave Desert that could take anywhere from 4 hours to 10 hours – you never know, because of congestion and incidents or accidents.
The Experience
We understand that for the train to be successful, it has to be easy and convenient for travelers both to and from Las Vegas and Southern California. The Victorville station will be located adjacent to the I-15 freeway and provide easy parking with optional valet service. The plan is for the "Las Vegas Experience" to start in Victorville with valet service, hotel check-in and through-checking of baggage straight to the resorts, and with convenient car rental facilities for the Southern California – bound travelers. Once in Las Vegas, there will be convenient access to the Las Vegas resorts with shuttle service, rental cars, taxis and potentially a direct connection to the Las Vegas Monorail.