High-speed rail plan slashes costs to calm critics

SFGate.com ^ | 4/1/12 | Michael Cabanatuan

[NormsRevenge]

State transportation officials have slashed the price tag for California's controversial high-speed rail project by $30 billion and expanded the first stretch of track to run from Merced in the Central Valley south to the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles.

The California High Speed Rail Authority's revised business plan, which will be released Monday in Fresno, calls for those dramatic changes as the agency prepares to ask the Legislature to use $2.7 billion in state high-speed rail bonds to start construction by early next year.

The drastic revision, which puts the proposed cost of the system at $68.4 billion instead of the $98.5 billion estimated in November, intends to cool opposition to the project, which has been labeled a "train to nowhere" for its plans to start in the state's rural center, and criticized for its high costs and uncertain funding plan.

While the updated strategy still calls for construction to start in the Central Valley, it abandons plans to build only a 130-mile stretch from Chowchilla (Madera County) to Bakersfield. Instead, it extends the initial line north to Merced and south across the Tehachapi Mountains to Palmdale and the San Fernando Valley, probably Burbank, and calls for it to carry high-speed trains along the 300-mile stretch. It relies heavily on what officials have called a "blended approach" that uses existing commuter rail lines - including Caltrain - in the Bay Area and Los Angeles.

That shift, authority board members said Saturday, is largely responsible for the cost savings because it eliminates the need to build separate tracks for high-speed rail through dense metropolitan areas.

[Carry_Okie]

This plan strikes me more as the usual 'build mo bigga suburbs cheaper to gettem into town' scam. At least it fits the usual pattern for freeway construction which is nearly always from the outside in.

My guess is they'll burn up all the dough and then sum building this leg and then hit up the voters for the other leg to the Bay Urea.

Speaking of commenting on "California Crat-Scamming^TM" (/s), SW, have you noticed that Dog Gone hasn't posted here in years? I've checked his last postings and in no way did any of them look like a syonara. I hope he didn't come to serious misfortune.

Jim, do you know anything about it?

[SierraWasp]

I think of him frequently but suddenly a few weeks ago I tried to remember his screen name to ping him to some petro energy thread.

I also had planed to meet up with him in 2009 on my coast-to-coast trip on I-10 but when I got to the Houston Space Center (I refuse to call it the Lyndon Johnson Space Center) they took us into the Lunar module control room and mentioned that the Shuttle was taking off on the following Monday.

We did the same thing that jealous astronaut woman did by driving straight through and non-stop to Cape Canaveral (I refuse to call it Cape Kennedy)! We didn't need Depends like she did because we were in an RV. So therefore I missed having a cup of coffee with Dog Gone. I thought of him when the big oil spill hit the gulf, especially!!!

[dearolddad]

It’s not a train to nowhere - it’s a train to Merced.

Nowhere and Merced are basically the same place.

[dearolddad]

I kinda miss old Willie Green..

I miss old Willie like a dose of clap.

[Jim Robinson]

He last logged in about a year ago. Guess he’s basically gone.

[Little Bill]

The last of the “Go Pat Go” crowd, drove me off of FR in ‘99. Bad days in FReeper land.

[Carry_Okie]

Thx

[KevinDavis]

That is why I miss.. Entertainment..