California's high-speed rail is running out of money, but progress has been made

[mahatmakanejeeves]

TECH

California’s high-speed rail is running out of money, but progress has been made

PUBLISHED WED, MAY 17 2023 • 8:13 AM EDT • UPDATED WED, MAY 17 2023 • 8:58 AM EDT

Jeniece Pettitt
@JENIECEP

KEY POINTS
• California’s plan is to build an electric train that will connect Los Angeles with the Central Valley and then San Francisco in two hours and 40 minutes.
• But 15 years later, there is not a single mile of track laid, and executives involved say there isn’t enough money to finish the project.
• Estimates suggest it will cost between $88 billion and $128 billion to complete the entire system from LA to San Francisco.

In 2008, California voted yes on a $9 billion bond authorization to build the nation’s first high-speed railway. The plan is to construct an electric train that will connect Los Angeles with the Central Valley and then San Francisco in two hours and 40 minutes.

But 15 years later, there is not a single mile of track laid, and executives involved say there isn’t enough money to finish the project. The latest estimates from the California High-Speed Rail Authority suggest it will cost between $88 billion and $128 billion to complete the entire system from LA to San Francisco. Inflation and higher construction costs have contributed to the high price tag.

The project has spent $9.8 billion so far, according to Brian Kelly, CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. ... “We knew we’ve had a funding gap ever since the project started,” Kelly said. “What I know is this: The earlier we build it, the cheaper it will be.”

But at this point, it’s not clear where the funding is going to come from. So far, 85% of it has come from the state of California. ... “One of the biggest hurdles clearly is funding,” said Toks Omishakin, secretary of the California State Transportation Agency. “We can’t get this project done without federal support. It’s just not going to happen.“

{snip}

[lapfog_1]

1. lets do some math

lets say 250 people ride the train from LA to SF every day... and there are 10 trains a day... and it operates 365 days a year... and each ticket costs $500...

how long to generate revenue of $88 Billion.

250 x 10 x 365 x 500 = 465,250,000 per year

88 billion / 465,250,000 = 189 years of operation... not including ongoing costs of people, energy, maintenance.

Probably should cancel this project.

[ColinC]

2. Because we should only fund projects that generate profit?

And infrastructure is not worth while if it is not profitable? That is literally most publicly funded projects.

[lapfog_1]

3. infrastructure is fine

this is a boondoggle... a very expensive boondoggle.

You want to get from LA to San Fran (or vice versa), there are already airplanes that do it.

Not to mention the environmental impact of the high speed railroad track and all of the bridges that must be built because you can't have a standard crossing with high speed rail.

There are literally dozens of other infrastructure projects that could be built that would improve more lives...

[ColinC]

5. It's infrastructure

Being built on about a hundred years of outdated and unusable infrastructure and poor city planning, requiring billions of dollars to put in place a modern system. We can keep living in the past with ancient technology, or put in the hard work and substantial investment that would save us trillions in the long term and catch us up with the rest of the modern industrialized world. I prefer the latter.

[MichMan]

4. Where did the $9.8 billion go ?

But 15 years later, there is not a single mile of track laid, and executives involved say there isn’t enough money to finish the project. The latest estimates from the California High-Speed Rail Authority suggest it will cost between $88 billion and $128 billion to complete the entire system from LA to San Francisco. Inflation and higher construction costs have contributed to the high price tag.

The project has spent $9.8 billion so far, according to Brian Kelly, CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority. ... “We knew we’ve had a funding gap ever since the project started,”