California High-Speed Rail Thread

[Frodo]

California gives OK to high-speed rail

By BURGESS EVERETT | 7/6/12 7:27 PM EDT

The California state Senate passed a budget measure Friday afternoon that sealed the deal: High-speed rail is coming to the Golden State.

The bill passed with only Democratic support in the upper chamber, 21-16, and authorizes the state to provide $2.7 billion in funds that the Department of Transportation will match with $3.3 billion, a total of $6 billion that will go to funding the initial, 130-mile high-speed segment in the Central Valley region.

The federal money was contingent on the state’s go-ahead; now there is enough money for contracts to go out and ground to be broken. Some of that money came from states like Wisconsin and Florida, whose Republican governors rejected the federal fast train money. The project, decades in the making, could begin construction as soon as this winter.

The legislation also contains nearly $2 billion for local projects in the state’s heavily populated Bay Area and Southern California. The General Assembly passed the measure Thursday, 51-27, but the Senate showdown was always the main event. In the days preceding the vote, Capitol Hill Democrats — reportedly including Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) — aided state supporters in shoring up the necessary 21 votes for the bill, which was the subject of intense media speculation all week as leaders delayed the vote until moments before a month-long recess began.
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Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0712/78192.html#ixzz1ztQ2UTou

[Frodo]

Also, here is the link to the California High Speed Rail Authority, as well as the map:

[Vosem]

This will totally make things better in California.

[Queen Mum Inks.LWC]

Good.  Let's hope it's a success.

[Negusa Nagast 🚀]

Good.  Let's hope it's a success.

Indeed. I'm hoping it will bring some jobs to my home state, and I look forward to the day where I can go from LA to SF by train in a couple of hours.

I have to thank Florida and Wisconsin for the money/jobs.

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

It's disgusting how people complain and complain about this, but have no problem with spending more money per mile for freeway widening projects.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I wish them well, but I don't see this as being anything other than a massive boondoggle that California can't afford.  The lack of ridership interested in stopping at the intermediate points means that even once it is built this is basically going to be comparable to flying between the endpoints, and the time difference will be so insignificant, most people will base their decision on price.

[Badger]

What is the cost analysis of whether train service can pay for itself post-construction?

[Small Business Owner of Any Repute]

What is the cost analysis of whether train service can pay for itself post-construction?

I don't have any papers in front of me, but there is literally no chance this will ever pay for itself. It is going to be a huge net loss.

[fezzyfestoon]

Excellent! I had already given up on this happening, what a pleasant surprise. And a great idea for recession spending, especially considering the great opportunity presented by others states' foolish refusal of federal funds. I am nervous though, something tells me this won't go smoothly. Mostly just because it's California doing it

[cavalcade]

http://www.cashuttlebus.com/reservation.php

https://www.greyhound.com/farefinder/step2.aspx

$45 from LA to SF and it's already built.  As opposed to $6 billion to build rail from...Merced to Bakersfield so people can pay $100 for a ticket, or something?  I can't really tell, it doesn't say which 130 miles they're building.  I can see that this is step 1, and after step 2 they will have Merced to LA.  The whole thing is projected to be $68 billion.

But it's good to know that California's budget problems are over.

[fezzyfestoon]

Yeah, their congestion problems too.

[Franzl]

It's disgusting how people complain and complain about this, but have no problem with spending more money per mile for freeway widening projects.

[Torie]

It's insane. Period.

[opebo]

It's insane. Period.

No, letting your class continue to receive such obscene privilege is insane, Torie. 

[Dr. Cynic]

This would be excellent if I lived in California. I travel exclusively by train in this country and I really wish we would upgrade our railroads.

[Likely Voter]

Bottom line is that the airports in CA are pretty much maxed out. The LA area to SF area air traffic is one of the most traveled int he world with dozens of flights every day. The bay area already has a good local rail network and one is being built in LA. Rail is needed to take off some of the load of future growth which cannot be accommodated by air or road. It will likely not make money for years but in a couple of decades it will be essential.

People need to think longer term.

[Torie]

It's insane. Period.

No, letting your class continue to receive such obscene privilege is insane, Torie. 

Your response is off topic opebo. That train is a fiscal disaster, and feeding that white elephant will be done by others long after I am dead. CA seems to be doing all it can, to get the federal law changed so that states can declare bankruptcy.

[Torie]

Bottom line is that the airports in CA are pretty much maxed out. The LA area to SF area air traffic is one of the most traveled int he world with dozens of flights every day. The bay area already has a good local rail network and one is being built in LA. Rail is needed to take off some of the load of future growth which cannot be accommodated by air or road. It will likely not make money for years but in a couple of decades it will be essential.

People need to think longer term.

Airports in CA are not maxed out. What gave you that idea?  There are a zillion flights from Socal to the Bay every day, from a host of airports. Seats are readily available, and they are very cheap.

[Likely Voter]

the CA airports are maxed out in terms of growth and expansion for creating more gates/terminals. For years they were trying to find a way to build a new airport in LA but have given up. With air and road there is limited ability to deal with future growth. Therefore rail offers a third option to offset

[Torie]

the CA airports are maxed out in terms of growth and expansion for creating more gates/terminals. For years they were trying to find a way to build a new airport in LA but have given up. With air and road there is limited ability to deal with future growth. Therefore rail offers a third option to offset

It turned out a lot of that expansion was not needed, including the opening of the El Toro airport in OC, and shutting down John Wayne, which would have been another fiscal disaster. The airports on the east coast are in a far worse mess. If you have some creditable study that 10 years hence, CA will be in gridlock, and it is either training or bust, please put it up. Otherwise, we are just going to disagree about the facts, and call it a day. In my experience, airports in CA work just fine, in part perhaps because of the reliable weather, and lack of population near CA.  The east coast is the opposite. Build a high speed train in the Bowash corridor, and see how that works first. That is where it is really needed, if it is needed anywhere.

[phk]

The big problem with California HSR is that you still need a car at your destination. Were not built up like Japan.

[muon2]

The big problem with California HSR is that you still need a car at your destination. Were not built up like Japan.

Zipcars claim to have a CA presence. I know them from Chicago and Champaign. I would imagine that this would be the sort of business model that would mesh well with HSR.

[Likely Voter]

You need a car at your destination as much as you would if you had flown. The bay area already has a robust light rail network and it is being improved as part of the HSR plan. LA is finally building up light rail as well.

Again this plan isn't to swith everyone from cars and planes, just to provide a third option to absorb future growth which cant be sustained by the current car/air infrastructure.

After living in Europe for many year it is frustrating for me that driving or flying are my only options whenever i need to go anywhere. Personally I prefer train travel as you can get work done and it is more comfortable than flying

[🐒Gods of Prosperity🔱🐲💸]

Has CA spent any money on high speed rail construction before this?  I thought they had.