This message was originally in conference misc.transport.rail.americas
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https://hotair.com/john-s-2/2026/04/29/price-of-california-high-speed-rai l-jumps-again-plus-a-cesar-chavez-bump-n3814423

Nothing about California's high speed rail is moving fast, except the
price. Just a few weeks ago, the estimated price of the long-delayed
project was said to be $126 billion. This figure wasn't hidden in a
spreadsheet somewhere, it was stated on a national news program.

This week, we're hearing a new number and it's more than a $100 billion
higher.

California.s long-delayed high-speed rail project is now facing renewed scrutiny after state leaders revealed a dramatically higher price tag,
now estimated at roughly $231 billion, nearly seven times the original
$33 billion projection approved by voters in 2008.

The revised figures have reignited talks in Sacramento over whether the
project can realistically be completed, how long it will take, and
whether the state can continue to fund it at this scale.

I have to say this again because it's stunning: The price has jumped
$105 billion since the estimate given three weeks ago. And despite that,
the plan to get this finished, according to the people in charge, is to
rely on private funding.

California High-Speed Rail Authority officials say the project.s future
depends on attracting private investors and focusing on a broader, more commercially viable vision, connecting Los Angeles to San Francisco.

Who is going to be dumb enough to invest in this boondoggle? I'd like to
know because if they have that much cash to burn I'd really like them to
fund my backyard rocket to the moon. I'm pretty sure I can get it done
for a measly $2 billion. I'll be working alone which should make my
progress a bit faster than the entire mass of unionized labor in
California.

Senator Tony Strickland sharply criticized the updated costs and
timeline, pointing to what he described as a major breakdown in public
trust...

.If you.re able to get private sector resources after you continue your
project that was supposed to be $33 billion and turned into $231 billion
I give you a lot of credit if you.re able to raise a lot of that private capital," Strickland said.

Yeah, I'm sorry but at $231 billion even some Democrats are going to
start to realize this is a fantasy the state can't afford. So far, Gov.
Newsom, who has been the chief supporter of the project, hasn't
commented about the new cost estimate. But I think if he's planning to
run for president next year, he may want this albatross off his neck.
This really could be the end of the line for this project.

Finally, the SF Chronicle has a story out today which provides a little
glimpse into just one of the factors that pushed the price of the high
speed rail project higher. You see, California made a special
arrangement to have the path of the train circle around an important
state monument that couldn't be disturbed: The Cesar Chavez National
Monument.

Policymakers from California High-Speed Rail Authority had to get the
train through the Tehachapi Mountains, an important,
geologically-challenging terrain separating the San Joaquin Valley from
the Mojave desert. And they needed to cut a path without causing too
much disruption to the Cesar Chavez National Monument, a 187-acre
compound, former headquarters of the United Farm Workers and final
resting place for the once-celebrated leader...

Originally framed as an act of preservation and a concession to the farmerworkers. movement, the rerouting has taken on a more fraught
meaning. It.s another stark example of how politics and threats of
litigation have warped the state.s marquee transportation megaproject...

Through letters and stakeholder meetings, the Chavez Center and
Foundation successfully lobbied for a bespoke alignment called the
.refined Cesar Chavez National Monument design option,. which moved the
track about three-quarters of a mile away from the monument boundary.
Shaped as a wide curve rather than a straight line, the route would pass
over viaducts and access roads and through two tunnels, each one longer
than a mile and a half.

To build it, the authority would need more track, more tunneling, and .
on top of everything . a massive dirt berm, stretching about 1,700 feet,
to conceal the train and blend with the desert hills.

The changes added an estimated $1 billion to the project, all so people
walking around the Chavez monument wouldn't be disturbed by the noise.
In retrospect, of course, the entire monument to an accused pedophile
and rapist seems like a bad idea and few if any people are going to be
coming to the spot to revere him.


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