Going From Dallas to Houston by Train? Try a Bike Instead — It’s Faster

On a 23-hour trip covering less than 250 miles, a journalist probes the future of trains in Texas.

1 minute read

November 28, 2025, 6:00 AM PST

By Christine McLaren


After reading that the sub-250 mile trip from Dallas to Houston takes an audacious 23 hours on Amtrak rail, journalist Benton Graham took the trip himself and chronicled the odyssey for Bloomberg. What he found was a state divided on the future of rail — some believing its future is bright, others wondering if it’s already too late. 

“[Republican Representative Pat Curry] isn’t convinced that Texas needs high-speed rail but says it warrants a study, something that could be approved during the legislative session in 2027. ‘I think one of the parts of the study has to be: Has technology left us behind? Are we too late?’ he said. He wonders whether, with autonomous vehicle technology advancing, Texas might have other, better transportation solutions coming just over the horizon,” Graham writes. 

Along the way, Graham introduces readers to a packed train of unlikely rail enthusiasts, from enthusiastic 20-somethings wanting to relive their Thomas the Tank Engine childhood fantasies for the first time, to Amtrak veterans who have spent decades riding the rails. Read the full account at the link below.

 

Thursday, November 20, 2025 in Bloomberg CityLab

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