Train to Run on Sunshine?

"A Tucson company wants to send you someday on a sun-fueled ride from one end of the state to the other. The idea of a high-speed train that runs on solar power is still in its early stage, but the project's creators are pitching the idea to area cities and potential investors. The idea is to start a train system that connects Tucson and Phoenix in a first phase. In the future it would extend north to Grand Canyon and south to Nogales. The cost for the first phase alone is estimated at $27 billion.

The train would require 110 megawatts of electricity and would operate with solar power generated from overhead panels. It would have a dedicated right-of-way. A local transportation official said the solar-train idea may be worth further study but faces major obstacles. [A]rranging the billions in government funding likely needed for the train would be tough, especially since the Tucson-Phoenix route was not on a list of priority high-speed rail corridors released recently by the Obama administration."