California poses rail risk for China

[xchrom]

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/NC03Cb01.html

The California High Speed Rail Authority (CHRSA) would be happy to consider investment by the People's Republic of China's sovereign wealth fund, China Investment Corporation (CIC), in the state's proposed high-speed rail link between Los Angeles and San Francisco, China Daily reported last month. [1]

The authority's chief executive, Roelof van Ark, also indicated a willingness to consider procurement of Chinese high-speed rail equipment for the project.

The CHRSA is facing gigantic funding problems and its interest in Chinese involvement is apparently more than idle chatter. The Christian Science Monitor reported that California high-speed rail, along with Hollywood cinema and NBA basketball, was on the
menu when Xi Jinping, much touted as the next PRC president, visited Los Angeles in early February:

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and California Governor Jerry Brown want to talk to Xi about Chinese investment in high-speed rail, which has come under scrutiny and has lost some public support here in recent weeks with the release of several studies suggesting major cost overruns. [2]

Chinese corporations would love to get into the US infrastructure business. China's State Construction Engineering Corporation has a subsidiary, China Construction America, in New York City. It has US$2 billion to invest and apparently sees US stinginess in the matter of infrastructure investment as a business opportunity:

Joe Catapano, a project manager with China Construction America, said the expertise and capital Chinese companies can provide are important.

"The key issue is money. It doesn't seem the United States government is willing to spend money (on building infrastructure)," said Catapano, who has 12 years of engineering experience in New York and California.

"High-speed rail is definitely something we can learn from China. We don't have any of that in the US, anywhere," he added. [3]

In 2010, China seemed ready to make a high profile play in Californian high-speed rail.



*** how piss poor have we become when we can't invest in our own high speed rail system and build it?
the bay bridge was built in china and assembled here -- how the mighty have fallen.

[Firebrand Gary]

1. We are a FUCKING joke!

And I mean that as a country.

Why (We) as the Democratic Party did not get this entirely funded is beyond me. Cost overruns? Really? How is it that projects like the Caldecott fourth bore and Transbay Center are running far under budget, yet HSR is running over? It's not like labor, materials or real estate has gotten more expensive.

I am beginning to think that HSR was never really a serious plan nationally, how could it have been? Probably just crumbs to entice the base. Go figure.

[Snake Alchemist]

2. Up to 3x the original cost and counting.

Here's a good breakdown.

http://pedestrianobservations.wordpress.com/2011/11/01/the-cahsr-bombshell/

[Bonobo]

3. Ha ha ha, it would be the 2nd time the Chinese built US's railroads. nt

[xchrom]

5. right? nt

[davidpdx]

4. Cripes

I hope people do everything they can to stop this. We don't need to have the Chinese owning more of our country. Another factor is they have had some serious accidents on their rail system in the last year or so.