General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Time for High Speed Rail in the U.S.A. [View all]ripcord
(5,284 posts)This would have been a lot easier to swallow if the supporters and organizers of California's high speed rail project hadn't outright lied about the cost and time to complete. The $33b estimate has ballooned to over $105b, they aren't even discussing the original 500 mile plan from San Francisco to Los Angeles anymore the focus is now on the 172 mile segment between Bakersfield and Merced. The entire project was supposed to be completed by now but the reduced 172 mile project won't be completed until 2030. These are the requirements the voters set out in Proposition 1A that approved the high speed rail project
Minimum 200 miles per hour (320 km/h) where conditions permit
Maximum travel time between SF and LA not to exceed 2 hr 40 min
Financially self-sustaining (operation and maintenance costs fully covered by revenue)
I seriously doubt they will be able to meet any of those. The sad thing is that there have been no investigations and no one held responsible for the constant push back of finish dates and the frightening increases in the final cost.
Just because something sounds good doesn't always mean it is practical. If California voters hadn't been lied to they never would have approved the project.