Two top members of the House Transportation Committee said they will push the president’s initiative seeking to give 80 percent of Americans access to high-speed rail over te course of the next 25 years.

“I believe it’s good for America to develop a high-speed rail corridor in the Northeast corridor,” Rep. Bill Shuster (R-Pa.), the chairman of the railroad subcommittee, said according to the Connecticut Post. “It’s a place we have to start, we have to accomplish it, because then I believe all of America, in the various corridors around the country, will want high-speed rail if they see success here.”

Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), the chairman of the whole committee, also said Friday he was “pleased that President Obama has helped to launch a system for improved passenger rail service for our nation.”