[ardecila]

Yes, the last mile will be a problem in Texas. I think the HSR plan really aims to capture more passengers from air travel than from highways, since air travel has the same last mile problem.

If there is demand to be served at the new HSR station, then taxi drivers, shttke operators, and rental car companies will set up shop there just like they did at the airports, so there are a few easy solutions to the access problem.

That's not to say that local transit can't play a role, but the devil's in the details here... where are the terminal stations at each end of the line? If they are not in the downtowns of their respective cities, then connecting to local transit will be just as challenging as at the airports. Anyway, the terminal stations may very well be in the suburbs of each city; eg in Houston, building the separated corridor to bring HSR from Loop 610 to downtown may be too expensive, and certainly not worth the investment if you expect your passengers to drive from wealthy northern/western areas like The Woodlands and River Oaks anyway.