California rail: Behind schedule, over budget, under scrutiny By EPN Staff California’s High-Speed Passenger Rail project is facing stronger scrutiny and the prospect of losing federal funding as stakeholders ponder whether to abandon the project, long pitched as needed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The San Francisco to Los Angeles project launched in 2009 was intended to get more people out of cars and onto trains. It was to be completed by 2020 and cost $33 billion. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy recently called for a review of California High-Speed Rail Authority, saying its project to connect the California Central Valley was three times over budget and already five years behind schedule. And U.S. Rep. Kevin Kiley of California invited the FBI to investigate. Why it matters The turmoil surrounding California’s project could signal trouble for other railway projects designed to lower transportation-sector emissions nationwide. Those projects include: Brightline West – connecting Southern California with Las Vegas. The project received $3 billion in federal IRA funds in September 2024. Cascadia High-Speed Rail – connecting Vancouver, British Columbia to Portland, Oregon, through Seattle, Washington. The future rail line was awarded almost $50 million in federal funding in December 2024. Southeast High-Speed Rail – connecting Atlanta to Charlotte, North Carolina. It is still early in development. Front Range Passenger Rail – connecting Pueblo, Colorado to Ft. Collins and cities along the Interstate 25 corridor, including Denver. This project is still in the planning stages. Bucking the trend, the Texas Central project planned to connect Houston to Dallas/Ft. Worth may avoid the ripple effects of the scrutiny on California. The project boasts it will be privately funded and not dependent upon government grants. Texas Central is still in development. The bigger picture Rail supporters have long expressed the benefits of such projects, including more efficient travel, reduced emissions and vehicle congestion, and simple convenience. They point to rail systems in Beijing, China, and throughout Europe as examples of the benefits a successful system could yield. Still, escalating costs and schedule delays have cast a shadow over some rail transportation systems. In Colorado, the Regional Transportation District, a commuter rail project, has struggled to maintain ridership due to service disruptions, safety concerns, and other complaints. Additionally, the originally proposed system has yet to complete its final leg of routes to Boulder, Colorado. Proponents of California High-Speed Rail continue to say the project will solve many of the state’s transportation issues while improving the environment, despite its many challenges. The latest estimate says the rail line won’t be completed until after 2033, with an estimated cost of $106 billion. Critics call the project a “boondoggle” and point to excess spending, further welcoming federal scrutiny. The outcome of the review called by the transportation secretary will determine whether the high-speed rail project will receive another $4 billion in federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), in addition to the $6.8 billion it has garnered thus far.
