All Aboard: Transporting Victor Valley to the Future
The Victor Valley Region of California is taking innovative steps to engage its community and drive economic growth. The city is shaping a vibrant future for the Victor Valley region, from the unique Victorville 101 Bus Tours to significant rail projects like the BNSF Barstow International Gateway and Brightline West.
In This Article
Victorville 101 Bus Tours: Connecting with the Community
In 2023, the City of Victorville launched free Victorville 101 Bus Tours. The tours are an initiative to strengthen its relationship with members of the community.
What began as an idea to build a citizen’s academy developed into a unique opportunity for locals to experience a side of Victorville they usually don’t see. Instead of sitting in cold conference rooms watching slide shows, community members get to be out and about, interacting with public officials and learning the inner workings of their city. It’s a convenient and easy way to learn the ins and outs of municipal government, including its services, operations and major strategic initiatives.
“During the bus tours, we talk about things like how our money is used, how the budget actually works, where does revenue come from,” says Sue Jones, public information officer for the City of Victorville. “It’s really neat.”
City officials lead each four-hour tour. Stops include the Wellness Center, Southern California Logistics Airport, Materials Recovery Facility, the fire station and the city library.
The last stop is City Hall, where attendees debrief from the tour, ask important questions and share feedback.
“The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive,” Jones says. “It’s easy when you live in a place — you think it’s faceless people (doing the work) … but when you go on a bus tour, you meet the real people who work for the city. You leave with a better connection to your city.”
Victorville 101 Bus Tours are offered once a year during the summer.
Right on Track
Plans are moving full speed ahead for a pair of rail projects in the Victor Valley region. BNSF Barstow International Gateway (BIG) and Brightline West are new projects are in the area. These initiatives will have huge economic impacts on the region.
BNSF Barstow International Gateway (BIG): A Transformative Rail Project
BIG is a $1.5 billion rail yard planned for the west side of Barstow that BNSF Railway hopes to begin construction on in 2025.
Through this facility, which is expected to open in 2028, the seaports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will transfer containers from ships to trains; then, those trains will transport the containers to the Barstow rail yard. From Barstow, BNSF will transport the goods eastward to cities throughout the U.S. via its nationwide railroad network. BNSF officials estimate that the BIG initiative will ultimately bring more than 20,000 direct and indirect jobs to the Victor Valley.
Brightline West: High-Speed Rail Connecting Victor Valley to Las Vegas and Los Angeles
A groundbreaking took place in April 2024 in Las Vegas on Brightline’s 218-mile, all-electric, high-speed passenger train line that will run between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. The project is expected to take four years to complete, and officials hope it will be ready by the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Besides Las Vegas and Los Angeles, Brightline West will have stations in Apple Valley, Hesperia and Rancho Cucamonga. And with the train able to reach speeds up to 200 mph, traveling from Las Vegas to Apple Valley and Hesperia (and vice versa) will take less than two hours.
Brightline is a Miami-based private company that launched in 2012 and has already constructed several high-speed train routes throughout Florida.
Get to Know Victor Valley
Want to learn more about living and working in Victor Valley, CA? Check out the latest edition of Victor Valley Economic Development.