The Trump administration found “no viable path” forward to complete California’s high-speed rail project following a nearly four-month investigation that jeopardizes $4 billion in federal funding.
In a 315-page compliance review released Wednesday, the Department of Transportation cited budget shortfalls, missed deadlines and a misleading projected ridership to connect San Francisco to Los Angeles via fast rail. The review targets federal grants for construction in the Central Valley. Those funds could be pulled within 37 days following the high-speed rail authority’s response.
“CHSRA relied on the false hope of an unending spigot of Federal taxpayer dollars,” the Federal Railroad Administration’s acting administrator Drew Feeley wrote. “In essence, CHSRA has conned the taxpayer out of its $4 billion investment, with no viable plan to deliver even that partial segment on time.”
The high-speed rail authority disagreed with the findings, which it called “misguided” and an inaccurate reflection of the project.
“The Authority will fully address and correct the record in our formal response,” a spokesperson said. “We remain firmly committed to completing the nation’s first true high-speed rail system connecting the major population centers in the state.”
Authority leaders previously sounded the alarm over the potential loss in federal funding while voting on new contracts to move forward on construction and design in the Central Valley. CEO Ian Choudri has also said that public-private partnerships will be key to the project’s future — an idea that has also been raised by a state-appointed advisory committee. And the latest state budget proposal extends at least $1 billion per year in funding toward the project for the next 20 years.
Roughly $14 billion has been spent on the project. The bulk of that funding — 82% — has been supplied by the state and 18% has been granted by the federal government. The Trump administration is not currently seeking repayment of past federal funds, according to the review.
The project has faced massive challenges since its inception. The budget is roughly $100 billion more than the authority’s original $33-billion estimate in 2008, with tens of billions of dollars yet to be identified. The train was initially proposed with a 2020 completion date, but construction has been limited to a 171-mile stretch in the Central Valley. And although the entire line between San Francisco and Los Angeles was environmentally cleared for construction last year, no portion has been completed.
Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy launched the review in February days after Republican lawmakers urged President Trump to investigate the project. Last month, Trump said that the federal government will not pay for the project.
Transit advocates protested Duffy’s announcement and Rep. Laura Friedman (D-Glendale), who sits on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, raised concerns over whether a possible withdrawal of federal dollars on this mega project could signal similar action for other transit projects awaiting commitments from the Trump administration.
