The Federal Railroad Administration improperly issued a rule establishing safety standards for a proposed high-speed rail project between Houston and Dallas, Tex., an anti-rail group and residents tell a federal court in the state. If built, the project will be a "financial albatross around the necks of victimized taxpayers" at a "great environmental expense," according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. Texas Central Railroad plans to build the passenger rail system using Central Japan Railway Co.'s technology, which doesn't comply with existing safety regulations, the plaintiffs say. The agency in response issued a rule of particular applicability, which sets standards that apply only to the proposed technology, the lawsuit says. The agency failed to consider alternatives to the rule, and it either "glossed over impacts or ignored them altogether," according to the complaint filed Wednesday. The agency also confusingly said it studied the impact of implementing the high-speed rail system in any location, when its own documents centered on the construction and operation of the project between Dallas and Houston, the lawsuit says.
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