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Horgan said he and Inslee talked about high-speed rail when they met in Victoria last fall, and he wants the province to do its “due diligence on our side of the border to make this a reality.”

“Today, we announced $300,000 for the business case to take into consideration the whole range of issues and engage with communities along the corridor, and what the corridor will ultimately be.”

One of the issues will be how to avoid the delays and cost overruns that California is experiencing with its foray into high-speed rail.

The Los Angeles Times reported last week that cost estimates for the Los Angeles to San Francisco bullet train proposal had ballooned to US$77.3 billion, up by $13 billion from estimates two years ago, and could soar to almost $100 billion.

“We have the advantage of going to school in California,” Inslee said. “Any mistakes they’ve made, we’re going to put it in the bank and learn from it.”

Horgan said the governments need to go through the business case first to get some of those answers, but he pointed to China and Japan as places where high-speed rail lines have run successfully for decades.

“It’s our view this is an opportunity we shouldn’t let pass by,” Horgan said. “It’s a physical link between our jurisdiction that will take cars off the road and will move people and goods in a safe and effective manner.”

The idea for Pacific Northwest high-speed rail has been percolating for close to a decade.

In 2010, then Premier Gordon Campbell, former Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire and then California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vowed to promote high-speed rail in establishing the Pacific Coast Collaborative.