Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-N.J.) Subcommittee Chair Donald Payne, Jr. (D-N.J.) kicked off the event, which ran for nearly 4-1/2 hours. “Thanks to the bold vision of President Biden, we stand at the crossroads of a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform the nation’s passenger-rail network and bring it into the 21st century,” he said. “Imagine being able to hop on a train in Newark at 9 a.m. and make it to Washington in time for today’s hearing at 11 a.m. High-speed rail could be the technology that fully unlocks the potential of passenger rail in this country.” He noted American technological achievements in the past, and said “there is nothing stopping us from applying the same perseverance to high-speed rail.”