BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — The city of Birmingham is once again flirting with the idea of construction a highspeed railway.

This project would make it possible to travel to Atlanta in under an hour. Birmingham City Councilor Clinton Woods said a high-speed rail could change the way Birmingham residents travel. The railway would connect Dallas to Atlanta along I-20, with stops in major cities.

“Basically what we’re looking at on this I-20 corridor from Atlanta, Ga., Jackson, Miss., Shreveport, La., Birmingham, Ala., all the way down to Dallas, Texas,” Woods said. “I think when you’re talking about a high-speed rail of going at least 120 MPH, you’re really talking about getting from point A to point B pretty quickly.”

Woods said the project is still in the early stages, with a lot of hurdles left before the rail is approved.

“We’ve got to work with all of our leadership and stakeholders in the state. The federal rail and other cities and counties, so we have a lot of work to do,” he said.

Woods said he hopes to see major strides in the high-speed rail project in the next 10 years. A public information meeting will be held on the project on March 19 at the BJCC.

Five years ago, the city council discussed a light rail but deemed the project too costly. Two years before that, ALDOT considered a similar project, that never materialized.

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