“It is unclear when construction on the largest infrastructure project in the country can begin: the state still needs a series of regulatory approvals to start the first 130 miles of track in the Central Valley. The plan also faces lawsuits by agriculture intertests and potential opposition by major freight railroads. Chris Megerian and Ralph Vartabediean, Vote Keeps Bullet Train Alive, Los Angeles Times, July 7, 2012, at p. A1.
High Speed Railroad (Con’t.)
Big news from California. The State Senate and the Governor worked out a deal whereby the senate gave its imprimatur to the funding of construction of the high speed rail, by voting in favor of issuance of some $5.9 billion — including $3.2 billion in federal funds, and $2.6 billion in state bond funds, and — here it comes, folks — another $2 billion for “other projects, such as electrification of of Cal Train tracks in the Bay Area and improvements for Metrolink in Los Angeles County.” The latter expenditure is evidently the price the senate insisted on to fund the initial link of the high speed rail. And that link will be — ta, da! — in nthe California Central Valley between Bakersfield and Modesto.
If you are thinking of hopping on the Central Valley choo-choo anytime soon, you can unpack your bags. The completion date is now estimated to be 2028, and the project has yet to overcome a few obstacles: