On the evening of July 16, President Donald Trump announced on the “Truth Social” platform that he would terminate funding for the California high-speed rail project due to delays and cost issues. Trump expressed his happiness in relieving law-abiding, taxpaying, hardworking American citizens from footing the bill for what he referred to as the expensive and futile high-speed rail in California.
The project has already cost taxpayers $15 billion without any substantial results. Trump criticized the project as being severely over budget, heavily regulated, and failing to fulfill its promises. He praised Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for decisively halting this “impractical and unnecessary” project.
As per Duffy’s official statement, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has stopped the disbursement of around $4 billion in unused federal funds allocated for the California high-speed rail project.
After spending approximately $15 billion over 16 years, the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) has yet to lay any high-speed rail tracks. The total estimated cost of the project has soared to $135 billion, according to the Department of Transportation.
Federal funds should not be wasted, and commitments must be kept, according to Duffy. The mismanagement and incompetence of the CHSRA over the past decade have demonstrated their inability to complete the construction of this “futile train” on time and within budget.
The high-speed rail project was planned to cover 800 miles with trains reaching a maximum speed of 200 mph, connecting San Francisco to Los Angeles-Anaheim. The Biden administration allocated around $4 billion for the project, which was initially expected to be completed before 2020 with a total estimated cost of $33 billion.
The decision to cancel funding was based on a comprehensive compliance review conducted by the FRA following CHSRA’s report submission in February. The review revealed several issues, including CHSRA’s failure to meet obligations outlined in the federal funding agreement, repeated plan changes, an additional requirement of at least $7 billion to meet order schedule progress (EOS), and inadequate time and funding for the electrification project to be completed before the deadline.
Overall, the FRA concluded that CHSRA lacks a viable path to complete the project before 2033 and is incapable of delivering as per requirements.
On June 4, the FRA issued a formal termination notice to CHSRA. Due to an unsatisfactory response from CHSRA, the FRA ultimately decided to formally terminate the funding agreement.
California Governor Gavin Newsom released a statement accusing the Trump administration of acting unlawfully and stating that California will take counteractions.
Despite Trump’s claims of no progress on the project, Newsom emphasized that construction is ongoing within a 171-mile range, with over 50 significant rail structures already completed, such as bridges, viaducts, and elevated structures, covering over 60 miles of track.
Newsom also mentioned that the environmental review from Los Angeles to the Bay Area, spanning 463 miles, has been completed, and progress is being made on the Caltrain electrification project, expected to enable passenger service between 2030 and 2033.
CHSRA Director Ian Choudri supported Newsom’s position, stating that arbitrarily canceling these subsidies is not only incorrect but also illegal. Choudri claimed that CHSRA has fulfilled all obligations to date, which was confirmed by a federal review in February. He added that the project has created over 15,000 job opportunities.