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The US' fastest train travels at 150 mph, while trains in China and France can travel at over 200 mph.
Projects across the country hope to fill the gap, as the recent infrastructure bill put $66 billion toward rail.
Some higher-speed trains, like Brightline Florida, will open in the summer, while others are much farther into the future.
The US is not exactly known for its high-speed trains.
Trains in China, Europe, and Japan travel at speeds of over 200 miles per hour. In the US, on the other hand, Amtrak's Acela — the country's fastest train — operates at top speeds of 150 mph, and will reach only 160 mph once the next generation of trains hit the rail.
Once it starts carrying passengers this summer, Brightline trains on a stretch of track in Florida near Orlando will reach a maximum of 125 mph, the very minimum speed required for a train to be considered high speed if it runs on standard tracks, according to the International Union of Railways.
Nevertheless, there's some ongoing effort to catch up, with President Joe Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law putting $66 billion towards rail, and a number of private high-speed rail projects in the work.
Take a look at the high-speed rail projects that are at various stages of development in the US:
1. Brightline Florida
Courtesy of Brightline
The privately owned company is scheduled to start connecting Miami to Orlando at 125 mph this summer.
It also plans to expand its network to Tampa in the future.
Courtesy of Brightline
2. Amtrak's next-generation Acela trains
Amtrak
The new fleet will reach a speed of up to 160 mph connecting Boston to Washington, DC, slower than other HSR projects due to running on conventional tracks.
