It’s really hard to tell the overall progress of the project just looking at footage of smaller sections. Is there any way for a map to be shown at the end that’s color coded for completed and in progress sections? Even throwing in a color for acquired land could be part of it.
Meh, I did some digging from Lucid's response. It's still not clear. You'd think there'd be a link that shows a map of completed construction, planned construction, and whatever construction Dippity Dewsom said he was going to stop. More importantly, this taxpayer would be interested in the original estimated cost and updates regarding the actual cost. Call me crazy. I'd also like to know planned routes, time schedules, and estimated ridership. Will it really be feasible to take a train from the central valley to wherever this track is going to be completed if there are so many stops along the way, you'd have reached your destination just as quick if you drove and wouldn't need to arranged transportation when you arrive? In short, I'm not convinced this was a good use of public treasury. Wouldn't addressing water and procuring more fire management assets be a higher priority? For that matter, the basic duties of our public agencies are being neglected. Maybe our tax funding should address those matters first. I'm pretty sure we pay our "public servants" lucrative enough compensation packages that we should expect the best of public services. They're pretty dismal where I live.
Then again if you build an HSR from LA to San Francisco similar to ones already completed and in operation in a dozen POORER developing nations... more than A DECADE AGO... like they came up with the bright idea for and have been trying to complete except for the sabotage of the Republican fossil fuel stooges. You'd find they WORK. People RIDE THEM. LA to San Francisco wouldn't take that much longer than the airport with the embarkation and debarkation rituals... Republican Fossil Fuel stooge's "Use-of-his-treasury-money" nay-say blather.
That's probably because fires are busy clearing right of ways through the cities in the proposed path while leaving the surrounding flora slightly scorched?
@@jb5music your argument is a common farce people often regurgitate when comparing countries. I’ll bet anything you’ll place all the countries woes on the orange man. Bottom line this is a complete waste of money that the average person won’t be able to afford for a train that’ll go 15mph faster than current trains. Meanwhile the state burns every year, homeless on the rise and out of control. Major companies like Tesla and Disney going to Texas and Florida, out of control rising taxes and crumbling infrastructure. But hey, the elites get to ride on a fast choo choo. Remind me who’s controlled the state and major cities (except maybe San Diego) all these years?
The CHSR Authority used to be slow and ineffective, but it's good to see that as of late they've managed to turn that around, get rid of management problems, and really pick up the pace on construction
I wish they worked on the Northern, Southern, and Central California parts simultaneously, but I know they probably don’t have enough money to do that. They should ask Biden for some money.
@@burgerman101 my understanding is the CA State Legislature determines how much funding the HSR project receives. Right now they deferred to include the remaining $4.2 billion of Prop 1A funds meant to be earmarked for HSR in the 2021 budget vote, and will need to include it in a final vote before they go on break later this year. If it’s not included work will be further delayed if not grind to a halt in some areas. So the federal government can send more money to the CAHSR project but unless the CA State Legislature accepts it for the HSR project then it won’t matter.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fc I don't believe direct federal money needs approval by the legislature, so the ~900 million dollars that the current(biden, buttigieg as sec. of trans) administration re-apportioned for the authority was readily available. They're saving it for the late 2021-early 2022 fiscal year though Federal matches from the ARRA don't require state approval either iirc
@@burgerman101 Technically part of the NorCal line is being done simultaneously (Caltrain Electrification), though Central + SoCal is contingent on the funding Chris mentioned.
It would be great if we can have some percentage of completion numbers for each section. For example, Madera to Fresno 40% completed, Fresno to Kings/Tulare 20% completed, Kings/Tulare to Bakersfield 10% completed, etc.
Because the Chinese government doesn't have to worry about buying properties, meeting safety standards, dealing with environmental issues, or fend off lawsuits, and can pay their workers like a dollar an hour.
@@Geotpf your brain is full of shit, only in rural and west high speed rail is constructed by China government, in rich areas many of them is set by local province or city government or private company
Yea I am glad to see they are prioritizing things that will be useful even if the project is never completed like putting overpasses on existing raillines.
This project is a debacle. It's way behind schedule, way over budget, and the only segment making progress will eventually connect two places few people want to go. Seriously California, Bakersfield and Merced?
@@CMRJD Big projects take time and money, this is not surprising. I live in San Francisco bay area, and own some apartment buildings in Fresno. It will be very convenient for me to take high speed rail from San Jose to Fresno and back once or twice a year instead of driving. And the amount of air traffic between SF and LA is huge, I suspect many people will ride the train and that will alleviate the airports. And if you've ever been to LAX, you know how much that is needed.
Finally an update on progress. I know that part of the construction is to build overpasses and underpasses to separate the grades. Thank you for the updates. I once lived in Bakersfield but now live in New York State. I hope to see more updates as it happens.
@@user-uj5zc6vx2k Good luck with that, if by completion you mean SF to LA, it will never happen. This thing will never be profitable and will never be completed.
Thanks for the transparency and updates. All mega projects cost more than they first set out to be. When it’s done I think people will use and like it.
@@christopherderasmo5041 Prefabricated and mass produced concrete that can be assembled on site. Instead they are laying the concrete one section at a time slowly and individually by multiple different private companies. This is how china builds HSR so quickly, they basically mass produced concrete for the tracks. Central economic planning has many efficiency benefits when it comes to public works projects like this. It was all planned out by one agency, the government, and constructed by government workers. We pay private companies with little oversight that sometimes waste billions of dollars to turn a profit. Like an engineering design pitched by a private company was supposed to be cheaper, but it ended up costing over 3 times as much and then that private company essentially scrapped the idea, from the outside that may look like an error, but the reality is these "design changes" are often carefully thought out to waste as much time and as much money, so the private company can keep enriching itself. It's profitable to waste government time, and that's why we should have a government entity take over construction projects like this so that incentive for profit is gone.
It's like this has been set up to fail. Instead of starting with the heavily populated ends at San Fran to San Jose and L.A. to San Diego then building the central section to connect them, they started with the central section running nowhere to nowhere.
That’s because the wide open Central Valley was the easiest place to begin construction and test trains. Plus the Caltrain corridor between SF and San Jose is being electrified for faster cleaner Caltrain service and future HSR, and at some point Burbank to LA and Anaheim will be electrified (which’ll hopefully mean electrification of the entire Surf Line to San Diego). This is the first high speed rail line in the US, and the largest infrastructure project ever undertaken in recent history, so just as with any large infrastructure project there were bound to be delays and cost overruns.
The problem with S.F. or L.A. is that there isn't enough money to get it out of either one of those places once you're done. There was essentially no good place to start with the currently funding gap. The metro areas also pose the problem of only being higher speed. So let's say something like Anaheim to Burbank or S.F. to Gilroy. The only place in either of those areas where you can run flat out are a few miles between S.J. and Gilroy. Non-high speed high speed rail would be a major embarrassment. I doubt any politician would want to attach themselves to that.
Totally, it's so depressing...you know you can already take a train from Bakersfield to Merced (via the Amtrak San Joaquins)? You can already go from Bakersfield to Oakland! But you can't take a train from LA to Bakersfield...even if you ignore other ideas (like San Diego to LA), that suggests quite a different order of operations.
I would not characterize the central section as running from nowhere to nowhere. The central valley cities of Fresno (the 5th largest city in California with more than 540,000 inhabitants) and Bakersfield (the 9th largest city in California with nearly 400,000 inhabitants) are not nowhere cities. Yes, HSR will probably connect to a small town like Merced in the central valley, but the population of California's central valley as a whole is growing and I believe a viable HSR rail connection from the central Valley to Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco will be beneficial to Californians and tourists alike.
Great looking high speed rail line and a model for the nation! Once the 220 mph trains start rolling support will multiply for more high speed rail projects! Great work California! I am traveling to your state next month and in spring 2022 and like to see this construction. My best wishes for the push to completion! Perhaps a silicon spike ceremony is in the future!
I'm confused as to why anyone is considering defunding the HSR. It would literally be more destructive to stop it now, after all this land has been acquired and infrastructure built.
Well, the Governor realized it is a big waste and will never reach the supposed goal so he said kill the project. The US government responded that if the project is cancelled, the federal funding needs to be returned. So the Governor said to resume the boondoggle project.
But still, we are ahead of other projects in the united states and with the current infrastructure bill it will be likely that we could start construction sooner to connect the central valley and northern California faster. There are many challenges but if we are able to finish the SF-LA portion with the current connections to public transportation in the bay area with Bart and in LA with metro, it would be more feasible to use high speed than in texas. State where the lacks public transportation connections to local and regional transportation in both Houston and Dallas according to current plans and public infrastructure. We already spent billions of dollars in this project while other projects are still on the planning stages. At least we should built from the central valley to nothern California since is is more easier to finish the north portion due to the sharing between Caltrain and CAHSR.
@@Alejandro-vn2si I hate to tell you this, but Dallas to Houston will be up and running and going fast than this Slightly Faster San Joaquin train ever will.
@@JediTev Well, good for them! We have a lot of issues in california and unfortunately high speed rail is facing many challenges. The thing is with the current infrastructure that many cities and counties have and adding that this train is actually being built (at this moment I have not hear exactly in what date either Texas Central or Brightline west will begin construction) will help California a lot. I think when I'll be older, I would be able to go from NorCal to SoCal without having to use a car in a faster, cleaner, and cheaper mode of transportation. If other states have their system before ours, that is fine. We need to look for the benefits that will have to our state and how positive will be this project for the majority of the state. Also, some texas are opose to that project so, it wouldn't be surprising if the project gets delay due to court challenges. Fun fact, if brightline finish the line between LA and Las Vegas, it is going to be the first high speed rail of America techniquly in california. So, we will see what is going to happen in the future.
@@JediTev What is the difference in milage of the 2 systems. How many rivers, canals, major thorofares and road ways need to be crossed. California's HSR could require 45 - 50 miles of tunnels ranging in length individually from several thousand feet to more than 20 miles under a cover exceeding 2,000ft at certain locations. What 2 mountain ranges lie between Dallas and Houston?
How is it a failure? This is the first high speed rail line in the US and the largest infrastructure project in recent history, and just as with any large infrastructure project there were bound to be delays and cost overruns. CAHSRA has learned from past mistakes and is working to bring HSR to California as quickly as they can. I’m proud that California is the first to bring true HSR here because it is so long overdue in the US. Japan’s Shinkansen was over double its original estimate and harshly criticized during construction at a time when cars and planes were the future, and it went on to both inspire high speed rail lines around the world and become one of its biggest success stories. California’s Golden Gate Bridge was considered a boondoggle when it was being constructed, and is now one of our state’s most beloved landmarks. Just as with both those projects California HSR will both transform California and the US and become an icon of California.
When you say FINISHED, if you're talking the entire system as envisioned, with the extensions to Sacramento and San Diego, then you're either going to need roughly $125 billion in federal funds, or a sizeable dedicated state tax beyond Cap and Trade. Good luck on either of those.
After 13 years since the project began, California has spent roughly $5.4 billion and yet have a single mile of rail to install. China’s high speed rail with a maximum speed of 350 km/h has a typical infrastructure unit cost of about US$ 17-21m per km, with a high ratio of viaducts and tunnels, as compared with US$25-39 m per km in Europe and as high as US$ 56m per km currently estimated in California. Distance between LA and San Francisco is about 382 mi (615 km). China could have built a whole double track line halfway between the two cities with that amount of $5.4B.
The speed at which China can build HSR is impressive, but remember what enables it. In china, if they want to build a road or rail over your property, that's it, your house will be demolished more or less immediately, and you have no say and no recourse. But in the US, people have this little thing called property rights. To build the high speed rail in the US takes years of litigation and acquisition to obtain all the property needed. So no, china could not have done it for 5.4 billion, because you can't even buy the property for that much.
@@MrCharliebbarkin the workers in china make 2 dollars an hour and since the government technically owns all the land you don't need money to buy that which you already own.
No Kidding. CHSR is going to displace a lot of the fossil fuel burning cars, trucks and planes traveling between SoCal and the Bay Area. Anything that is BETTER for the environment like CHSR should be exempt.
@@nathanvalle6997 Many cars, trucks, and busses are now electric. Why is rail needed? Also, how exactly is California supposed to generate the *electricity* needed to power this line. California has roving blackouts at least once per year. Despite this, California hasn't built new nuclear plants or other significant electricity generating infrastructure.
@California Dreamer Once fossil fuel cars are banned, electric cars will need to be good for more than just "running errands around town". It's impossible for even the best public transportation to "be anywhere at anytime".
@California Dreamer Public transit is a good idea. This high speed rail line is not. Do you know *anyone* who lives in LA who works in San Francisco? Vice versa? From what I know, the tickets will be $80+ *each way*, so it's hardly going to be used by the "working class".
@California Dreamer just because they keep extending their deadlines doesn't mean it's on track. This thing blew way past the budget it was set for it and the initial timeline. Try to not be annoying.
@California Dreamer So then since construction has taken longer than they said it would it's not staying on track, right? Just ignore everything that they failed at and actually they're doing great!
@California Dreamer The CAHSRA was established and supposed to bring up plans in 2008, it has been 13 years and counting. The space race lasted 20 years and put a man on the moon, these guys can't even build a rail line in the same time frame. You seem to have some other motive behind what you're saying, as you cannot reasonably say a 13 year ongoing project with nothing to show for it is on time in any way. Sounds like you just want to dogmatically defend your little pet projects no matter how poorly managed they are.
@California Dreamer Projection at its finest, every one of your insults can be placed on you. You're making all these comments and replying to 10 or 20 different people to defend your little pet project that's over budget and behind schedule. Nothing to show for this, no technological advancements, no income, no new ideas, just bloat and wasted money. No, an unfinished track in the middle of nowhere is not something to show for. It's a sunk cost until people are riding it. Planting billions of dollars in an unfinished project for 13 years and counting means that money is now doing nothing with nothing to show for it. It's like you're the pope of the new high speed train religion, you're worshipping and simping for this rail system like your life depends on it. The level of shilling you've undertaken for this failed money sink is akin to a CCP agent. You evidently have a huge political bias and have invested much of your time and personality into a train.
@California Dreamer Right, it can't have anything to do with it taking 13 years to accomplish nothing. It's just politics right? So what if a project takes 20 or 30 years and a hundred billion dollars, you can't criticize it because it will be done when it's done and all that.
Love to see the progress on what I believe to be one of the most important environmental projects of our time. We need this to happen in so many more states. Let's vote for better politicians and policies.
The environmental aspect is overstated. By the time this is actually done and operational, California's passenger vehicle fleet will be well on its way to converting to electric, and new sales of pure-gasoline personal vehicles will have been banned.
We have been waiting years to get utilities moved and property bought and water districts and state agencies to stop fighting everything. Once land is giving to the project within months they are being worked on. Every piece of available land is either being worked on or is done
@@helloitsyou147 big money involved everyone has to use or slow it down to get some. It is bullcrap that this happens but only big construction companies and lawyer make out on it.
@@rl9808 your correct on how much is complete fully but within the next 5 years most of the central valley will be completed as long as the money is there.
Thanks for the update. A couple of questions... You forgot to mention - how many miles of track have actually been laid? Have all of the land acquisition issues in Kings County been resolved? How much over budget is the project at his point? What is the projected completion date of this 119 mile segment? How do you ever expect to pay back the bondholders who thought this was a good idea? Just asking...
Why don't we just keep this little project in CA for people of CA! And all u good people chip in to getter dun! You are SO advanced out there that only you could appreciate such a service. What's a few more hundred Billion, I hear you are running jumbo budget surpluses these days. Good on you! How much you figure u would charge for ticket, seeing as the slight cost overruns could amount to 50x original estimate? Again, Bon Chance!
The proposition to fund the planning and initial construction passed in 2008. The authority stated the project was underway in 2012. They "broke ground" at the beginning of 2015.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority was originally created in the mid-1990s… granted not much could be done until the proposition passed in '08, but it's now more than a 25-year-long endeavor thus far.
@California Dreamer I only shared info about how long the HSR project had been going on for; not from a point of criticism, but from a point of historical accuracy. The topic so far had been only about the HSR timeline, and that's what I was contributing to.
The Hoover Dam was built in 5 years and had 25,000 workers. When it was built in the 1930s it was the largest concrete structure of its time and was finished one year early. This is no Hoover Dam and a bullet train is much different. Still, I wish this project would get done already. Taking too long and costing too much money.
Agree with L, here is some more perspective. Over 150 years ago the transcontinental railroad was built in 6 years; during the Civil War. They were attacked by Indians, had to bore through the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and find a way through the Rocky Mountains. I believe ground breaking for the High Speed Rail was 2015. Glad to see the current accomplishment.
When do we get to the tracks and catenary phase? Thought we'd be further by now! China would have built a nationwide network of high speed rail in this amount of time!
China built 12,000 miles of high speed rail while we argued over whether or not this even got build. Then while we argued about where to put it they built another 12,000 miles. By the time we actually get track laid they'll build another 12,000 miles. Then we'll have Fresno and Bakersfield connected ... whoop-de-do. We need high speed rail connecting New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and every place in between. The US is relying on infrastructure built over a century ago. If we don't get off our collective butts we'll never catch up.
The Track and Systems contract was ready to go by the High Speed Rail Authority last year since 90 miles of right-of-way are complete, but it can't be awarded without access to the rest of the Prop 1A funds. Those funds were included on the most recent proposal, but Assembly members modified it to "No action to be taken" in their version of the bill. The track can be installed if lawmakers stop playing their political games with our tax dollars.
@@brandonk7361 don't know where there is 90 miles ready to at? Cp1 is only 29 miles and not complete and cp2-3 is 67 mile and no where near complete and cp4 is 22 miles and no where near complete. Last I heard they are trying get approval to work on completed areas because of all issues with land and utilities still in the way.
@@timothygrell4398 It has nothing to do with anybody's rights. The politicians have been playing hide to pork with this for over 20 years. Political fornication has nothing to do with anybodies rights. It doesn't take 20 years to make sure workers are properly compensated. Eminent domain doesn't take 20 years. Even the most meticulous environmental impact report doesn't take 20 years. It all about politics not rights. Though I'm sure building the Great Wall of Trump would have fixed all of the US's antique infrastructure.
I'm 56 years old, and I am doubtful that I'll ever see a functioning high-speed rail system between Sacramento and Los Angeles. And to think of the other things in the state that the money could be better used on....
any such video should, as a conspicuous part of it, show overall goals, timelines and current progress in easy to understand maps and charts. this is close to useless towards informing the obvious questions that arise from the topic / title. it possibly even attempts to portray on time on budget progress, when that is not at all obvious from the actual information portrayed.
The United States, should of been a leader in high speed 🚄🚅 rail over 30 years ago. We are needing this project in California. Now lower business tax rates and income taxes for low-income families and middle class earners.
This is a critical project for our state. and when I be a independent governor one day. I will give $50B to all services such as healthcare, schools, police, firefighters, transportation, vet and zoos, resources, and to communities. but 20B will go to this project as this is a incredible thing that will benefit all kinds of people and will increase our economy stronger than ever.
They need to build the segment from Bakersfield to Palmdale. Then they can run a surf liner train from San Diego through Los Angeles through Santa Clarita to Palmdale and you have connectivity from the south.
How many tons of concrete are they pouring each month? How many miles are they completing each month? What are the labor rates for the form workers? How much do the engineering companies charge per hour for 1) engineer, 2) designer, 3) draftsperson? How much is spent on engineering in total each month? How much is spent on Management each month?
So basically you're saying this will be completed around 2050 -2060. It's been over 10 years now and this is all you've got done out in the middle of nowhere.
So answer me this: does the current plan of interim service between Bakersfield and Merced starting in 2029 mean that only that section will be completed by then with work on extending toward San Jose and LA not beginning until after interim service has begun creating revenue, or will work progress over the passes (at least Pacheco Pass) as train testing and eventual Central Valley service is being commenced? Follow up: can you confirm whether the Bakersfield to Merced HSR service will entail the discontinuance of Amtrak San Joaquins service south of Merced to incentivize people to ride HSR, cause if it does that is a terrible idea because a lot of people in the Central Valley, namely those in towns like Wasco and Corcoran that won’t be served by HSR, rely on the Amtrak service who may not be interested and/or are unable to afford riding HSR (unless the ticket prices will be the same as the Amtrak San Joaquins) and resort to driving.
The completion date is not really clear at this point. Not impossible they'd have the money in 2028? Officially its "before the end of the decade". The Merced-Bakersfield section is projected to run at an $80 million/year deficit as of the 2020 business plan. There is no additional money currently for extension beyond Bakersfield or Merced, assuming it gets that far. To be fair, there could possibly be a billion or 2, but not enough to do anything significant. I think the most that is guaranteed at the point is the 119 miles of cps 1-4 single track, not electrified. Haven't heard anything about discontinuing the San Joaquins. As one is state and the other federal, I don't think they overlap in that way. Although the entire motivation to get to Merced is so that CAHSR can hook up with Amtrak and go north from there. One intriguing possibility is that Amtrak could be chosen to operate CAHSR.
As with most projects in California it might be totally over-budget, over-schedule, over-studied, and over-engineered with aging technology, but it eventually gets done. Really its amazing it gets done at all. Enjoy your $100 ticket prices!
@California Dreamer Why can't anyone post a comment without mentioning someone pulling information out their ass? Its common sense... standard seat ticket price of $100 or higher between ANY two points in the proposed system is going to be a hard sell in the face of $49 Southwest fares.... just ask Amtrak...
@California Dreamer The fact that you work in the industry doesn't mean you are any more credible. More than likely it means you are probably delusional like the rest of the people pushing this plan. You should understand that same day ticket prices are always going to be more than buying in advance. No? You also should understand that Southwest doesn't fly SJC to Fresno because the demand isn't there just as the demand is not there for HSR. You should understand that the HSR authority has projected ticket prices anywhere from $85 to $105 and we all know thats probably on the low side. "Are you suggesting that someone wouldn’t pay an additional 33 dollars to reduce that travel time to under three hours?" Yes thats EXACTLY what I am suggesting especially since that 33 dollars more is probably going to be a LOT more. Especially when all these mythical SJC to Fresno passengers don't show up.
Yours is one of the very few organizations in the country to post such regular updates on such major transportation projects, and it is hard to fault your pictures. Is there any way you could add a fast drone trip or parasail trip sometime? That might end up being cheaper than several maps--which, of course are great in and of themselves. The Central Susquehanna Valley Bypass Project (in Pa.) has lately taken to using a parasail pilot to show the progress. The bypass of Sunbury, Pa. and other locales, BTW, will be almost a tourist attraction. (I know, I know, it's not in the same league as Fresno.) Big construction projects here and around the world have helped keep me going during the Pandemic days. (8-25-21, St. Joseph, MO)
I question why materials from the 19th century are being used on such an important infrastructure project? Example, steel re-bar? Composite re-bar is far superior, adds strength, and doesn't corrode. The Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese have figured this out 40 years ago.
Glass-fiber bars are fine for some projects, but are primarily used for lighter construction today due to a variety of reasons. The first is that it is about 25% more expensive per structure which adds up fast especially since this video shows them using a lot of thick rebar and rebar isn't cheap to begin with. Another main reason this that glass-fiber bars are tough to work with. They have to be treated more carefully on the jobsite which means slower work and you can't bend them on the jobsite. Since this project is using a lot of cast-in-place structures, pre-ordering all of those custom-shaped pieces from the factory becomes a real challenge especially when not many companies deal with that material. Finally, regulatory bodies are a lot less confident in the long term behavior of glass-fiber bars in heavy construction (primarily their ability to resist creep). A quick Google search of construction projects shows that Japan, China, Korea, and Germany are all also using standard steel rebar in their high speed rail construction which leads me to believe that they don't think glass fiber is the best fit for these kinds of projects either.
@@brandonk7361 China and Japan used CARBON FIBER reinforcement "re-bar" on all of their construction since about 2010. Why? It offers better tension, the cost is about 10% more, but the life of the materials (Re-bar & cement) is double that of what using steel would be. FYI, the steel industry has fought construction code changes for years in the USA for this reason. Another FYI, I watched the prefab sections being poured in China, all with carbon fiber re-bar.
@@LoydChampion At least here in the US, carbon fiber rebar isn’t readily available for any large scale projects. I can’t even think of a seller in my state that offers it much less for just 10% above the cost of steel. The combination of it not being available, costing more, and not being in standard US building codes is why it’s not being used here. What we’re seeing in the video are cast-in-place elements of the structure. It didn’t take long on Google to see that the CIP features on HSR systems in the countries you mentioned are also using steel over any kind of composite bar. I haven’t seen the precast facilities for this project, but I would be shocked if they were choosing to drive up the price and legal risks by using anything other than steel bar in their beams.
@@brandonk7361 It isn't available in the US at the volumes and price point because the steel industry spends millions each year to prevent the acceptance. This is one little tiny area that shows why and where America is behind the rest of the world, and why we are continuing to fall behind under the burden of our current system of "pay to play" within our governments.
I personally think they should have gotten some Japanese contractors to help in planning and development. They have had 70 years to perfect themselves routing trains through their 70% mountainous country. Also, China is not well known for their quality.
@@CaseNumber00 It was suppose to be a joint project with China actually. China had already helped planned it all. Until trump decide to attack China with the trade war, then China disconnected. Quality may not be that good, but China can sure as hell move mountains while US build the Quality. I don't think Japan is going to ever help the way US treats Japanese Companies with force buyouts and mergers. US is kind of on their own now thanks to Trump stupid trade war. Let alone Europe because there is no money to be made for European survival.
It's a good start, but the rate of construction doesn't seem very impressive. You justify the pandemic as a point of fallback, but if we look at construction outside of the US, then the case is entirely opposite.
@@Spookieham I don't doubt that there are efficiency in construction that could be found. But its just that construction costs are a relatively low portion of the total costs and that I assume they are at least somewhat trying to be efficient.
60 billion and 11 years later, this is what we get? At first I was hoping my elder son could ride it to college, and then I was hoping my younger boy could go to college on it, now I am hoping my coffin could
The Chinese built our trans-continental railroad. Perhaps if we would have had them build this one, they'd have completed a high speed train route between Los Angeles and San Francisco ten years ago! That would have included a tunnel under the mountains so as to allow a connection from Bakersfield to Union Station in Los Angeles.
Found this online; The new high-speed rail line would have trains capable of speeds up to 200mph. These would carry up to 115,000 passengers a day and serve up to 24 stations along an 800-mile route serving the population centers of San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sacramento and San Diego.
Current price tag is $100M, but there remain many unforeseen issues, like the track foundations sinking 16-30' into the ground. I hope this works, but remain highly skeptical. I will bet we see totally autonomous vehicles transporting humans and goods all over CA before CAHSR ever takes first passenger
Its literally amazing that any project in CA that is not reopening car and truck access ever gets even started. Luckily forest fires dont burn roads as bad so its just photographed handshakes with the politicians
Any sane person can see this whole thing is a massive money pit. Who, exactly would use this train? Does ANYBODY realize how much tickets would be? Is cost overruns of 300 billion & finish date pushed to 2060 Ok with the public? Tell me I'm wrong about costs & how long to finish.
So, things are going GREAT at the BULLET TRAIN! IF MEMORY SERVES ME, I WAS SUPPOSED TO TAKE THE BULLET FROM SF TO SAN DIEGO THIS WEEK. REFRESH MY MEMORY, IS THE PROJECT COMPLETED? Wait, you say absolutely NOTHING is done? You can't ride ANY BULLET Train anywhere in California? And if & when it would be completed, it would be maybe 90 years behind schedule & a TRILLION over budget. Just MINOR inconveniences for such an important project.
I love how so many throw in politics into this and argue about that. While it's just something that should've happened decades ago, and much more efficiently. Look at Europe, China, Japan... They're all doing it on national scale, but the USA can't. This project is not... amazing compared to successful ones, but it's the one that *could* shift some of the balance between cars and public transport. Something USA really needs
Guys... just ask Japan to help u guys. U guys are so behind in construction tech, it's frustrating. CA got the money to have new construction tech guys. Finish this damn thing faster pleaseeee
Dont know if you know but they could have bid to build it. They did not participate and only Spanish companies have been the most active in bidding this project
@@abunazih74 bull they do not build faster they have different rules that let them bypass safety and proper construction methods. In California they have earthquakes standards that slow construction down a lot.
@@abunazih74 by the way pre cast is always faster but also shows weakness in skilled builders and can't put up falsework and pour in place. Weak skill set in China
It’s really hard to tell the overall progress of the project just looking at footage of smaller sections. Is there any way for a map to be shown at the end that’s color coded for completed and in progress sections? Even throwing in a color for acquired land could be part of it.
Meh, I did some digging from Lucid's response. It's still not clear. You'd think there'd be a link that shows a map of completed construction, planned construction, and whatever construction Dippity Dewsom said he was going to stop. More importantly, this taxpayer would be interested in the original estimated cost and updates regarding the actual cost. Call me crazy.
I'd also like to know planned routes, time schedules, and estimated ridership. Will it really be feasible to take a train from the central valley to wherever this track is going to be completed if there are so many stops along the way, you'd have reached your destination just as quick if you drove and wouldn't need to arranged transportation when you arrive?
In short, I'm not convinced this was a good use of public treasury. Wouldn't addressing water and procuring more fire management assets be a higher priority? For that matter, the basic duties of our public agencies are being neglected. Maybe our tax funding should address those matters first. I'm pretty sure we pay our "public servants" lucrative enough compensation packages that we should expect the best of public services. They're pretty dismal where I live.
Then again if you build an HSR from LA to San Francisco similar to ones already completed and in operation in a dozen POORER developing nations... more than A DECADE AGO... like they came up with the bright idea for and have been trying to complete except for the sabotage of the Republican fossil fuel stooges. You'd find they WORK. People RIDE THEM. LA to San Francisco wouldn't take that much longer than the airport with the embarkation and debarkation rituals... Republican Fossil Fuel stooge's "Use-of-his-treasury-money" nay-say blather.
Agreed
That's probably because fires are busy clearing right of ways through the cities in the proposed path while leaving the surrounding flora slightly scorched?
@@jb5music your argument is a common farce people often regurgitate when comparing countries. I’ll bet anything you’ll place all the countries woes on the orange man. Bottom line this is a complete waste of money that the average person won’t be able to afford for a train that’ll go 15mph faster than current trains. Meanwhile the state burns every year, homeless on the rise and out of control. Major companies like Tesla and Disney going to Texas and Florida, out of control rising taxes and crumbling infrastructure. But hey, the elites get to ride on a fast choo choo. Remind me who’s controlled the state and major cities (except maybe San Diego) all these years?
The CHSR Authority used to be slow and ineffective, but it's good to see that as of late they've managed to turn that around, get rid of management problems, and really pick up the pace on construction
I wish they worked on the Northern, Southern, and Central California parts simultaneously, but I know they probably don’t have enough money to do that. They should ask Biden for some money.
@@burgerman101 my understanding is the CA State Legislature determines how much funding the HSR project receives. Right now they deferred to include the remaining $4.2 billion of Prop 1A funds meant to be earmarked for HSR in the 2021 budget vote, and will need to include it in a final vote before they go on break later this year. If it’s not included work will be further delayed if not grind to a halt in some areas. So the federal government can send more money to the CAHSR project but unless the CA State Legislature accepts it for the HSR project then it won’t matter.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fc I don't believe direct federal money needs approval by the legislature, so the ~900 million dollars that the current(biden, buttigieg as sec. of trans) administration re-apportioned for the authority was readily available. They're saving it for the late 2021-early 2022 fiscal year though
Federal matches from the ARRA don't require state approval either iirc
@@burgerman101 Technically part of the NorCal line is being done simultaneously (Caltrain Electrification), though Central + SoCal is contingent on the funding Chris mentioned.
Mainly because of covid helping speed up the project
It would be great if we can have some percentage of completion numbers for each section. For example, Madera to Fresno 40% completed, Fresno to Kings/Tulare 20% completed, Kings/Tulare to Bakersfield 10% completed, etc.
The way to get the USA back on its feet (infrastructure) this should have been done decades ago across the whole country.
Airline industry would stop it
Planes are faster than trains
Meanwhile, China averages about 70 miles a month of new HS Rail and HS Maglift.
Because the Chinese government doesn't have to worry about buying properties, meeting safety standards, dealing with environmental issues, or fend off lawsuits, and can pay their workers like a dollar an hour.
@@Geotpf LOL if this is how free world people think, China is so happy to see you guys doing so in the future.
@@Geotpf your brain is full of shit, only in rural and west high speed rail is constructed by China government, in rich areas many of them is set by local province or city government or private company
We need more aerial shots. Glad to see progress.
Check out the @four foot
@@donalddavis303 Oh yeah I definitely follow him. I LOVE his channel.
The grade separation looks safe for me, no more hitting cars and trucks.
Sort of the point of a grade separation.
Yea I am glad to see they are prioritizing things that will be useful even if the project is never completed like putting overpasses on existing raillines.
Just like Japan. Decades ahead of USA
Cool update. It would be nice to show a map of where exactly all these things are to put everything in context.
Google for Map: Ca High-Speed rail map
@@garyolafson8303 I get it, but I think it would be a better if it were included in the video. That's all.
+
This project is a debacle. It's way behind schedule, way over budget, and the only segment making progress will eventually connect two places few people want to go. Seriously California, Bakersfield and Merced?
@@CMRJD Big projects take time and money, this is not surprising. I live in San Francisco bay area, and own some apartment buildings in Fresno. It will be very convenient for me to take high speed rail from San Jose to Fresno and back once or twice a year instead of driving. And the amount of air traffic between SF and LA is huge, I suspect many people will ride the train and that will alleviate the airports. And if you've ever been to LAX, you know how much that is needed.
Finally an update on progress. I know that part of the construction is to build overpasses and underpasses to separate the grades. Thank you for the updates. I once lived in Bakersfield but now live in New York State. I hope to see more updates as it happens.
I'll check back in 2025 and see how many more miles have been completed.
Ill check in somewhere around 2033 for complete completion, sf to la 🤣
@@user-uj5zc6vx2k Good luck with that, if by completion you mean SF to LA, it will never happen. This thing will never be profitable and will never be completed.
@@gistsc sad but probably true
@@gistsc Oh please, China does this all the time..
5 miles
Thanks for the transparency and updates. All mega projects cost more than they first set out to be. When it’s done I think people will use and like it.
I’ll check back in about her 20 years when they are 70B deep and completed another 5mi of track.
Goodness. They are still building it the slow old fashion way.
@@christopherderasmo5041 Prefabricated and mass produced concrete that can be assembled on site. Instead they are laying the concrete one section at a time slowly and individually by multiple different private companies.
This is how china builds HSR so quickly, they basically mass produced concrete for the tracks. Central economic planning has many efficiency benefits when it comes to public works projects like this. It was all planned out by one agency, the government, and constructed by government workers.
We pay private companies with little oversight that sometimes waste billions of dollars to turn a profit. Like an engineering design pitched by a private company was supposed to be cheaper, but it ended up costing over 3 times as much and then that private company essentially scrapped the idea, from the outside that may look like an error, but the reality is these "design changes" are often carefully thought out to waste as much time and as much money, so the private company can keep enriching itself. It's profitable to waste government time, and that's why we should have a government entity take over construction projects like this so that incentive for profit is gone.
It's like this has been set up to fail. Instead of starting with the heavily populated ends at San Fran to San Jose and L.A. to San Diego then building the central section to connect them, they started with the central section running nowhere to nowhere.
That’s because the wide open Central Valley was the easiest place to begin construction and test trains. Plus the Caltrain corridor between SF and San Jose is being electrified for faster cleaner Caltrain service and future HSR, and at some point Burbank to LA and Anaheim will be electrified (which’ll hopefully mean electrification of the entire Surf Line to San Diego). This is the first high speed rail line in the US, and the largest infrastructure project ever undertaken in recent history, so just as with any large infrastructure project there were bound to be delays and cost overruns.
The problem with S.F. or L.A. is that there isn't enough money to get it out of either one of those places once you're done. There was essentially no good place to start with the currently funding gap. The metro areas also pose the problem of only being higher speed. So let's say something like Anaheim to Burbank or S.F. to Gilroy. The only place in either of those areas where you can run flat out are a few miles between S.J. and Gilroy. Non-high speed high speed rail would be a major embarrassment. I doubt any politician would want to attach themselves to that.
Totally, it's so depressing...you know you can already take a train from Bakersfield to Merced (via the Amtrak San Joaquins)? You can already go from Bakersfield to Oakland! But you can't take a train from LA to Bakersfield...even if you ignore other ideas (like San Diego to LA), that suggests quite a different order of operations.
@@ramanshah7627 Exactly. I rode on Amtrak from Emeryville to Bakersfield, then transfer to a bus for last leg of the trip to L.A. Union Station.
I would not characterize the central section as running from nowhere to nowhere. The central valley cities of Fresno (the 5th largest city in California with more than 540,000 inhabitants) and Bakersfield (the 9th largest city in California with nearly 400,000 inhabitants) are not nowhere cities. Yes, HSR will probably connect to a small town like Merced in the central valley, but the population of California's central valley as a whole is growing and I believe a viable HSR rail connection from the central Valley to Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco will be beneficial to Californians and tourists alike.
I want California High Speed Rail.
Me too!
8 more years ***hopefully***
@@Jonalius and how much over run $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
@@justme6275 “$700 million trillion billion and $692 billion dollars”
@@Jonalius We have the best government that money can buy.... we have endless $, just keep the press rolling 🤑
Great looking high speed rail line and a model for the nation! Once the 220 mph trains start rolling support will multiply for more high speed rail projects! Great work California! I am traveling to your state next month and in spring 2022 and like to see this construction. My best wishes for the push to completion! Perhaps a silicon spike ceremony is in the future!
We need more reservoirs, STORE WATER and GENERATE ELECTRICITY!!!
WHAT A CONCEPT
I'm confused as to why anyone is considering defunding the HSR. It would literally be more destructive to stop it now, after all this land has been acquired and infrastructure built.
Well, the Governor realized it is a big waste and will never reach the supposed goal so he said kill the project. The US government responded that if the project is cancelled, the federal funding needs to be returned. So the Governor said to resume the boondoggle project.
But still, we are ahead of other projects in the united states and with the current infrastructure bill it will be likely that we could start construction sooner to connect the central valley and northern California faster. There are many challenges but if we are able to finish the SF-LA portion with the current connections to public transportation in the bay area with Bart and in LA with metro, it would be more feasible to use high speed than in texas. State where the lacks public transportation connections to local and regional transportation in both Houston and Dallas according to current plans and public infrastructure. We already spent billions of dollars in this project while other projects are still on the planning stages. At least we should built from the central valley to nothern California since is is more easier to finish the north portion due to the sharing between Caltrain and CAHSR.
@@Alejandro-vn2si I hate to tell you this, but Dallas to Houston will be up and running and going fast than this Slightly Faster San Joaquin train ever will.
@@JediTev Well, good for them! We have a lot of issues in california and unfortunately high speed rail is facing many challenges. The thing is with the current infrastructure that many cities and counties have and adding that this train is actually being built (at this moment I have not hear exactly in what date either Texas Central or Brightline west will begin construction) will help California a lot. I think when I'll be older, I would be able to go from NorCal to SoCal without having to use a car in a faster, cleaner, and cheaper mode of transportation. If other states have their system before ours, that is fine. We need to look for the benefits that will have to our state and how positive will be this project for the majority of the state. Also, some texas are opose to that project so, it wouldn't be surprising if the project gets delay due to court challenges. Fun fact, if brightline finish the line between LA and Las Vegas, it is going to be the first high speed rail of America techniquly in california. So, we will see what is going to happen in the future.
@@JediTev What is the difference in milage of the 2 systems. How many rivers, canals, major thorofares and road ways need to be crossed. California's HSR could require 45 - 50 miles of tunnels ranging in length individually from several thousand feet to more than 20 miles under a cover exceeding 2,000ft at certain locations. What 2 mountain ranges lie between Dallas and Houston?
Although this project has been a complete failure and an embarrassment, I would still love to see this project finished without anymore setbacks.
How is it a failure? This is the first high speed rail line in the US and the largest infrastructure project in recent history, and just as with any large infrastructure project there were bound to be delays and cost overruns. CAHSRA has learned from past mistakes and is working to bring HSR to California as quickly as they can. I’m proud that California is the first to bring true HSR here because it is so long overdue in the US. Japan’s Shinkansen was over double its original estimate and harshly criticized during construction at a time when cars and planes were the future, and it went on to both inspire high speed rail lines around the world and become one of its biggest success stories. California’s Golden Gate Bridge was considered a boondoggle when it was being constructed, and is now one of our state’s most beloved landmarks. Just as with both those projects California HSR will both transform California and the US and become an icon of California.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fc Well, it's going to be 3 times over budget and probably behind schedule by at least 10 years, so let's call it a disappointment.
When you say FINISHED, if you're talking the entire system as envisioned, with the extensions to Sacramento and San Diego, then you're either going to need roughly $125 billion in federal funds, or a sizeable dedicated state tax beyond Cap and Trade. Good luck on either of those.
Would you ride it?
After 13 years since the project began, California has spent roughly $5.4 billion and yet have a single mile of rail to install.
China’s high speed rail with a maximum speed of 350 km/h has a typical infrastructure unit cost of about US$ 17-21m per km, with a high ratio of viaducts and tunnels, as compared with US$25-39 m per km in Europe and as high as US$ 56m per km currently estimated in California.
Distance between LA and San Francisco is about 382 mi (615 km). China could have built a whole double track line halfway between the two cities with that amount of $5.4B.
The speed at which China can build HSR is impressive, but remember what enables it. In china, if they want to build a road or rail over your property, that's it, your house will be demolished more or less immediately, and you have no say and no recourse. But in the US, people have this little thing called property rights. To build the high speed rail in the US takes years of litigation and acquisition to obtain all the property needed. So no, china could not have done it for 5.4 billion, because you can't even buy the property for that much.
@@MrCharliebbarkin they wouldn't had to have worried about it if they just built down the middle of I-5 and tunneled under the Grapevine.
@@JediTev great idea but i think they intend to save that space for future freeway expansion.
@@MrCharliebbarkin
the workers in china make 2 dollars an hour and since the government technically owns all the land you don't need money to buy that which you already own.
@@JediTev Then the rail would miss high population centers like Fresno and Bakersfield.
Cool...maybe my railroad pocket watch collection will increase in value...
People seem to focus more on politics than the railway itself... keep going strong, CHSR!
They should just exempt CHSR from CEQA to get it done.
No Kidding. CHSR is going to displace a lot of the fossil fuel burning cars, trucks and planes traveling between SoCal and the Bay Area. Anything that is BETTER for the environment like CHSR should be exempt.
@@nathanvalle6997 Many cars, trucks, and busses are now electric. Why is rail needed?
Also, how exactly is California supposed to generate the *electricity* needed to power this line. California has roving blackouts at least once per year. Despite this, California hasn't built new nuclear plants or other significant electricity generating infrastructure.
@California Dreamer Once fossil fuel cars are banned, electric cars will need to be good for more than just "running errands around town". It's impossible for even the best public transportation to "be anywhere at anytime".
@California Dreamer Public transit is a good idea. This high speed rail line is not. Do you know *anyone* who lives in LA who works in San Francisco? Vice versa? From what I know, the tickets will be $80+ *each way*, so it's hardly going to be used by the "working class".
Rail is far more efficient than cars or planes regardless of energy source. New nuclear would be nice though.
HSR makes sense. Best Regards from Europe.
She said construction is staying "on track". This thing couldn't be more behind!
@California Dreamer just because they keep extending their deadlines doesn't mean it's on track. This thing blew way past the budget it was set for it and the initial timeline.
Try to not be annoying.
@California Dreamer So then since construction has taken longer than they said it would it's not staying on track, right?
Just ignore everything that they failed at and actually they're doing great!
@California Dreamer The CAHSRA was established and supposed to bring up plans in 2008, it has been 13 years and counting. The space race lasted 20 years and put a man on the moon, these guys can't even build a rail line in the same time frame. You seem to have some other motive behind what you're saying, as you cannot reasonably say a 13 year ongoing project with nothing to show for it is on time in any way. Sounds like you just want to dogmatically defend your little pet projects no matter how poorly managed they are.
@California Dreamer Projection at its finest, every one of your insults can be placed on you. You're making all these comments and replying to 10 or 20 different people to defend your little pet project that's over budget and behind schedule.
Nothing to show for this, no technological advancements, no income, no new ideas, just bloat and wasted money. No, an unfinished track in the middle of nowhere is not something to show for. It's a sunk cost until people are riding it. Planting billions of dollars in an unfinished project for 13 years and counting means that money is now doing nothing with nothing to show for it.
It's like you're the pope of the new high speed train religion, you're worshipping and simping for this rail system like your life depends on it. The level of shilling you've undertaken for this failed money sink is akin to a CCP agent. You evidently have a huge political bias and have invested much of your time and personality into a train.
@California Dreamer Right, it can't have anything to do with it taking 13 years to accomplish nothing. It's just politics right? So what if a project takes 20 or 30 years and a hundred billion dollars, you can't criticize it because it will be done when it's done and all that.
I love California High Speed Rail.
Where? Amtrak?
West Coast
Amtrak is outdated. This is going to replace Amtrak in the future.
Love to see the progress on what I believe to be one of the most important environmental projects of our time. We need this to happen in so many more states. Let's vote for better politicians and policies.
...it will never happen...
The environmental aspect is overstated. By the time this is actually done and operational, California's passenger vehicle fleet will be well on its way to converting to electric, and new sales of pure-gasoline personal vehicles will have been banned.
What percent is complete? 1%? ETA. What’s taking so long?
We have been waiting years to get utilities moved and property bought and water districts and state agencies to stop fighting everything. Once land is giving to the project within months they are being worked on. Every piece of available land is either being worked on or is done
@@timothygrell4398 so sad there is so much resistance to something so great.
@@helloitsyou147 big money involved everyone has to use or slow it down to get some. It is bullcrap that this happens but only big construction companies and lawyer make out on it.
0%. And that’s gonna stay that way.
@@rl9808 your correct on how much is complete fully but within the next 5 years most of the central valley will be completed as long as the money is there.
Los Angeles to San Francisco high-speed rail service starting soon... In the year 2525, if man is still alive. :(
It will be but those wildfires are driving people away from California.
2033
I hope it will complete in the year 2025
Not a chance
If we were in China, it would be done next year
Thanks for the update. A couple of questions... You forgot to mention - how many miles of track have actually been laid? Have all of the land acquisition issues in Kings County been resolved? How much over budget is the project at his point? What is the projected completion date of this 119 mile segment? How do you ever expect to pay back the bondholders who thought this was a good idea?
Just asking...
Good. I hope the US govt can have a high speed rail 🚈 bill that can assist this work and create a nationwide high speed network across the country
Why don't we just keep this little project in CA for people of CA! And all u good people chip in to getter dun! You are SO advanced out there that only you could appreciate such a service. What's a few more hundred Billion, I hear you are running jumbo budget surpluses these days. Good on you! How much you figure u would charge for ticket, seeing as the slight cost overruns could amount to 50x original estimate? Again, Bon Chance!
Too bad they're not building a High Speed Water System. I think water is a little more important than a train.
Will be finish in another decade and cost more. Been waiting for 2 decades.
Exactly which decade do u think it will be done? And a SLIGHT cost overrun of 900 Billion from original 20 Billion. What a deal
Damn, how many years (or decades?) had this project been going on?
The proposition to fund the planning and initial construction passed in 2008. The authority stated the project was underway in 2012. They "broke ground" at the beginning of 2015.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority was originally created in the mid-1990s… granted not much could be done until the proposition passed in '08, but it's now more than a 25-year-long endeavor thus far.
@California Dreamer Not exactly a ringing endorsement for running transit infrastructure through the east side of the Central Valley...
@California Dreamer I only shared info about how long the HSR project had been going on for; not from a point of criticism, but from a point of historical accuracy. The topic so far had been only about the HSR timeline, and that's what I was contributing to.
The amount of money wasted on this project is mind blowing.
When is the California High Speed Rail going to be completed?
Sorry, Because I want California High Speed Rail.
Cuz we need it now!
@@osmanhossain676 If we had start this in 1995 it would have been 90% completed by now.
Bulid new US aircraft carrier faster than build HSR
2033
I’m 30, I will probably never get to ride this train in my lifetime.😢😪😭
Sorry to disappoint you, Monstar; But I'm 70 1/2 years, I expect to ride it 2029 or 2030 depending on the testing timeline (nonpublic tests)
@@garyolafson8303 O.K. So, $200 Billion then. Not exactly what the voters wanted.
The Hoover Dam was built in 5 years and had 25,000 workers. When it was built in the 1930s it was the largest concrete structure of its time and was finished one year early. This is no Hoover Dam and a bullet train is much different. Still, I wish this project would get done already. Taking too long and costing too much money.
Agree with L, here is some more perspective. Over 150 years ago the transcontinental railroad was built in 6 years; during the Civil War. They were attacked by Indians, had to bore through the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and find a way through the Rocky Mountains. I believe ground breaking for the High Speed Rail was 2015. Glad to see the current accomplishment.
Is the buildhsr website updated? It still shows the San Joaquin river viaduct as an active project and not a completed one
When do we get to the tracks and catenary phase? Thought we'd be further by now! China would have built a nationwide network of high speed rail in this amount of time!
Let's use there same rules on property buying and inspections and environmental and we would be done to
China built 12,000 miles of high speed rail while we argued over whether or not this even got build. Then while we argued about where to put it they built another 12,000 miles. By the time we actually get track laid they'll build another 12,000 miles. Then we'll have Fresno and Bakersfield connected ... whoop-de-do. We need high speed rail connecting New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and every place in between. The US is relying on infrastructure built over a century ago. If we don't get off our collective butts we'll never catch up.
The Track and Systems contract was ready to go by the High Speed Rail Authority last year since 90 miles of right-of-way are complete, but it can't be awarded without access to the rest of the Prop 1A funds. Those funds were included on the most recent proposal, but Assembly members modified it to "No action to be taken" in their version of the bill. The track can be installed if lawmakers stop playing their political games with our tax dollars.
@@brandonk7361 don't know where there is 90 miles ready to at? Cp1 is only 29 miles and not complete and cp2-3 is 67 mile and no where near complete and cp4 is 22 miles and no where near complete. Last I heard they are trying get approval to work on completed areas because of all issues with land and utilities still in the way.
@@timothygrell4398 It has nothing to do with anybody's rights. The politicians have been playing hide to pork with this for over 20 years. Political fornication has nothing to do with anybodies rights. It doesn't take 20 years to make sure workers are properly compensated. Eminent domain doesn't take 20 years. Even the most meticulous environmental impact report doesn't take 20 years. It all about politics not rights. Though I'm sure building the Great Wall of Trump would have fixed all of the US's antique infrastructure.
I'm 56 years old, and I am doubtful that I'll ever see a functioning high-speed rail system between Sacramento and Los Angeles. And to think of the other things in the state that the money could be better used on....
any such video should, as a conspicuous part of it, show overall goals, timelines and current progress in easy to understand maps and charts. this is close to useless towards informing the obvious questions that arise from the topic / title. it possibly even attempts to portray on time on budget progress, when that is not at all obvious from the actual information portrayed.
The United States, should of been a leader in high speed 🚄🚅 rail over 30 years ago. We are needing this project in California. Now lower business tax rates and income taxes for low-income families and middle class earners.
I want California high speed rail ❤️ wish we had the maglev train, but this will do for now.
If the past is any indication you will get neither.
@@CasinoMobbin 😂😂😂 this made me laugh hard
How old are u D G ? If u under 25, u may see SOMETHING before you're no longer around.
a much better video Update.. thank you ..
Where is the rail?? I don't see an inch of "Rail"!!
This is a critical project for our state. and when I be a independent governor one day. I will give $50B to all services such as healthcare, schools, police, firefighters, transportation, vet and zoos, resources, and to communities. but 20B will go to this project as this is a incredible thing that will benefit all kinds of people and will increase our economy stronger than ever.
Look forward to seeing how this looks when complete.
They need to build the segment from Bakersfield to Palmdale. Then they can run a surf liner train from San Diego through Los Angeles through Santa Clarita to Palmdale and you have connectivity from the south.
How many tons of concrete are they pouring each month? How many miles are they completing each month? What are the labor rates for the form workers? How much do the engineering companies charge per hour for 1) engineer, 2) designer, 3) draftsperson? How much is spent on engineering in total each month? How much is spent on Management each month?
Each ticket sold - if this blunder ever gets built - will not even pay half the money to maintain this goose egg to nowhere.
Please do the best y'all can to finish on time. I hope this project finish soon as possible 😅
I think it would be nice to have high speed Amtrak trains and to add more routes
Let's here it for the train to nowhere! Yeah!!!
"The slowest high-speed rail in the world at highest cost per mile" ~ Elon Musk
So basically you're saying this will be completed around 2050 -2060. It's been over 10 years now and this is all you've got done out in the middle of nowhere.
So answer me this: does the current plan of interim service between Bakersfield and Merced starting in 2029 mean that only that section will be completed by then with work on extending toward San Jose and LA not beginning until after interim service has begun creating revenue, or will work progress over the passes (at least Pacheco Pass) as train testing and eventual Central Valley service is being commenced?
Follow up: can you confirm whether the Bakersfield to Merced HSR service will entail the discontinuance of Amtrak San Joaquins service south of Merced to incentivize people to ride HSR, cause if it does that is a terrible idea because a lot of people in the Central Valley, namely those in towns like Wasco and Corcoran that won’t be served by HSR, rely on the Amtrak service who may not be interested and/or are unable to afford riding HSR (unless the ticket prices will be the same as the Amtrak San Joaquins) and resort to driving.
The completion date is not really clear at this point. Not impossible they'd have the money in 2028? Officially its "before the end of the decade". The Merced-Bakersfield section is projected to run at an $80 million/year deficit as of the 2020 business plan. There is no additional money currently for extension beyond Bakersfield or Merced, assuming it gets that far. To be fair, there could possibly be a billion or 2, but not enough to do anything significant. I think the most that is guaranteed at the point is the 119 miles of cps 1-4 single track, not electrified.
Haven't heard anything about discontinuing the San Joaquins. As one is state and the other federal, I don't think they overlap in that way. Although the entire motivation to get to Merced is so that CAHSR can hook up with Amtrak and go north from there. One intriguing possibility is that Amtrak could be chosen to operate CAHSR.
At this point I do not believe trains will ever run. If they do, I'll just treat it as a pleasant surprise!
Kinda doubt ticket price will be anywhere similar to Amtrack. A little matter of what, 500 Billion dollars to pay back?
This will be California’s Stonehenge in the future.
I bet it won't even be high speed because there will be too many stops too close together
Meanwhile people in California don't even have enough drinking water
From nowhere to nowhere, at high expense. 20 YEARS and not one inch of track.
20 years? 13 if you're being generous.
This project completed in 2030...
Indonesia : hold my beer
Wow, luxury hand made HSR! Btw, it's a 💯% US made HSR with a world record slow progress. Any proud?
Have you figured out how to get it into Los Angeles as originally planned? I didn't think so-
Why are they not pre fabricating sections in a plant and then assemble it on site?
As with most projects in California it might be totally over-budget, over-schedule, over-studied, and over-engineered with aging technology, but it eventually gets done. Really its amazing it gets done at all. Enjoy your $100 ticket prices!
@California Dreamer Why can't anyone post a comment without mentioning someone pulling information out their ass? Its common sense... standard seat ticket price of $100 or higher between ANY two points in the proposed system is going to be a hard sell in the face of $49 Southwest fares.... just ask Amtrak...
@California Dreamer The fact that you work in the industry doesn't mean you are any more credible. More than likely it means you are probably delusional like the rest of the people pushing this plan. You should understand that same day ticket prices are always going to be more than buying in advance. No? You also should understand that Southwest doesn't fly SJC to Fresno because the demand isn't there just as the demand is not there for HSR. You should understand that the HSR authority has projected ticket prices anywhere from $85 to $105 and we all know thats probably on the low side. "Are you suggesting that someone wouldn’t pay an additional 33 dollars to reduce that travel time to under three hours?" Yes thats EXACTLY what I am suggesting especially since that 33 dollars more is probably going to be a LOT more. Especially when all these mythical SJC to Fresno passengers don't show up.
Yours is one of the very few organizations in the country to post such regular updates on such major transportation projects, and it is hard to fault your pictures. Is there any way you could add a fast drone trip or parasail trip sometime? That might end up being cheaper than several maps--which, of course are great in and of themselves. The Central Susquehanna Valley Bypass Project (in Pa.) has lately taken to using a parasail pilot to show the progress. The bypass of Sunbury, Pa. and other locales, BTW, will be almost a tourist attraction. (I know, I know, it's not in the same league as Fresno.) Big construction projects here and around the world have helped keep me going during the Pandemic days. (8-25-21, St. Joseph, MO)
Will it be cheaper than driving for a family of four?
I question why materials from the 19th century are being used on such an important infrastructure project? Example, steel re-bar? Composite re-bar is far superior, adds strength, and doesn't corrode. The Chinese, Koreans, and Japanese have figured this out 40 years ago.
Glass-fiber bars are fine for some projects, but are primarily used for lighter construction today due to a variety of reasons. The first is that it is about 25% more expensive per structure which adds up fast especially since this video shows them using a lot of thick rebar and rebar isn't cheap to begin with. Another main reason this that glass-fiber bars are tough to work with. They have to be treated more carefully on the jobsite which means slower work and you can't bend them on the jobsite. Since this project is using a lot of cast-in-place structures, pre-ordering all of those custom-shaped pieces from the factory becomes a real challenge especially when not many companies deal with that material. Finally, regulatory bodies are a lot less confident in the long term behavior of glass-fiber bars in heavy construction (primarily their ability to resist creep).
A quick Google search of construction projects shows that Japan, China, Korea, and Germany are all also using standard steel rebar in their high speed rail construction which leads me to believe that they don't think glass fiber is the best fit for these kinds of projects either.
We live in America. We’re pretty well known for being around 60 years behind other first world countries.
@@brandonk7361 China and Japan used CARBON FIBER reinforcement "re-bar" on all of their construction since about 2010. Why? It offers better tension, the cost is about 10% more, but the life of the materials (Re-bar & cement) is double that of what using steel would be. FYI, the steel industry has fought construction code changes for years in the USA for this reason. Another FYI, I watched the prefab sections being poured in China, all with carbon fiber re-bar.
@@LoydChampion At least here in the US, carbon fiber rebar isn’t readily available for any large scale projects. I can’t even think of a seller in my state that offers it much less for just 10% above the cost of steel.
The combination of it not being available, costing more, and not being in standard US building codes is why it’s not being used here. What we’re seeing in the video are cast-in-place elements of the structure. It didn’t take long on Google to see that the CIP features on HSR systems in the countries you mentioned are also using steel over any kind of composite bar.
I haven’t seen the precast facilities for this project, but I would be shocked if they were choosing to drive up the price and legal risks by using anything other than steel bar in their beams.
@@brandonk7361 It isn't available in the US at the volumes and price point because the steel industry spends millions each year to prevent the acceptance. This is one little tiny area that shows why and where America is behind the rest of the world, and why we are continuing to fall behind under the burden of our current system of "pay to play" within our governments.
Chill out guys. Its still decades away.
Why are you using 20th Century construction technique for a 21st Century structure? The Chinese do much of this work in pre-fab.
Canadians also did the same with their highway in Toronto. I saw then have pre-built rails and stack them like legos using giant lift.
I personally think they should have gotten some Japanese contractors to help in planning and development. They have had 70 years to perfect themselves routing trains through their 70% mountainous country. Also, China is not well known for their quality.
Because the United States does not have modern construction equipment!
@@CaseNumber00 It was suppose to be a joint project with China actually. China had already helped planned it all. Until trump decide to attack China with the trade war, then China disconnected. Quality may not be that good, but China can sure as hell move mountains while US build the Quality. I don't think Japan is going to ever help the way US treats Japanese Companies with force buyouts and mergers. US is kind of on their own now thanks to Trump stupid trade war. Let alone Europe because there is no money to be made for European survival.
In Europe this would be all prefabbed as well as it's much cheaper to build elsewhere and then just drop it into place.
The high speed train with the most slow construction project
How far north will it go?
This is the first I've heard of this, the actual building of it northern California doesn't get this news for some reason.
It's a good start, but the rate of construction doesn't seem very impressive.
You justify the pandemic as a point of fallback, but if we look at construction outside of the US, then the case is entirely opposite.
I'll be dead before this route is finished.
they should copy chinese technology and build it with modular prefabricated parts mounted by on rail machinery
Its not the construction that is making it so expensive. Its land right and lawsuits. Which China does not have to deal with.
@@peterisawesomeplease I don't know - lots of traditional formwork there for concrete. In Europe that would be prefabricated and just craned in.
@@Spookieham I don't doubt that there are efficiency in construction that could be found. But its just that construction costs are a relatively low portion of the total costs and that I assume they are at least somewhat trying to be efficient.
60 billion and 11 years later, this is what we get? At first I was hoping my elder son could ride it to college, and then I was hoping my younger boy could go to college on it, now I am hoping my coffin could
Taking way too long
union rules
why not build the sections in a factory and install it on site like other nations?
China would’ve had this done 10years ago
@California Dreamer come on, get real!
@@justme6275 that is real
By the time this is finished no one will be left in California
How far behind schedule and how much over budget? A horrible idea. We need Larry Elder.
Who's going to build the trains for the high speed rail ?
prob china
30 years later, and bridges are still JUST being built....
The Chinese built our trans-continental railroad. Perhaps if we would have had them build this one, they'd have completed a high speed train route between Los Angeles and San Francisco ten years ago! That would have included a tunnel under the mountains so as to allow a connection from Bakersfield to Union Station in Los Angeles.
How many people per day does CAHSR estimate will use this service?
Found this online; The new high-speed rail line would have trains capable of speeds up to 200mph. These would carry up to 115,000 passengers a day and serve up to 24 stations along an 800-mile route serving the population centers of San Francisco, Los Angeles, Sacramento and San Diego.
Current price tag is $100M, but there remain many unforeseen issues, like the track foundations sinking 16-30' into the ground. I hope this works, but remain highly skeptical. I will bet we see totally autonomous vehicles transporting humans and goods all over CA before CAHSR ever takes first passenger
How about a map of the total project for an actual construction update?
You're kidding, right? This is a $100 Billion Democrat goose egg project.
What HSR kind is it? is that Shinkansen?
Its literally amazing that any project in CA that is not reopening car and truck access ever gets even started. Luckily forest fires dont burn roads as bad so its just photographed handshakes with the politicians
So cool to see this finally happen
And Republicans call this a 'train to nowhere' ..shows what they know! 😂
Any sane person can see this whole thing is a massive money pit. Who, exactly would use this train? Does ANYBODY realize how much tickets would be? Is cost overruns of 300 billion & finish date pushed to 2060 Ok with the public? Tell me I'm wrong about costs & how long to finish.
Rail from nowhere to nowhere. Now that’s progress.
So, things are going GREAT at the BULLET TRAIN! IF MEMORY SERVES ME, I WAS SUPPOSED TO TAKE THE BULLET FROM SF TO SAN DIEGO THIS WEEK. REFRESH MY MEMORY, IS THE PROJECT COMPLETED? Wait, you say absolutely NOTHING is done? You can't ride ANY BULLET Train anywhere in California? And if & when it would be completed, it would be maybe 90 years behind schedule & a TRILLION over budget. Just MINOR inconveniences for such an important project.
I love how so many throw in politics into this and argue about that.
While it's just something that should've happened decades ago, and much more efficiently. Look at Europe, China, Japan... They're all doing it on national scale, but the USA can't.
This project is not... amazing compared to successful ones, but it's the one that *could* shift some of the balance between cars and public transport.
Something USA really needs
Our water is more important then a train to nowhere......spend our tax money on desalinization. We don't need a train in a pandemic
Guys... just ask Japan to help u guys. U guys are so behind in construction tech, it's frustrating. CA got the money to have new construction tech guys. Finish this damn thing faster pleaseeee
Dont know if you know but they could have bid to build it. They did not participate and only Spanish companies have been the most active in bidding this project
Actually, the Chinese build faster - and have faster trains. So much for American Exceptionalism.
@@abunazih74 bull they do not build faster they have different rules that let them bypass safety and proper construction methods. In California they have earthquakes standards that slow construction down a lot.
@@abunazih74 by the way pre cast is always faster but also shows weakness in skilled builders and can't put up falsework and pour in place. Weak skill set in China
@@timothygrell4398 Japan has earthquakes too. They still build faster than us though :/
Where are the trains coming from? US made?
They are being made by Acme Wheelbarrow Company. It's all California can afford.
Why not make that bridge another road
INVEST IN AMERICA
SHE'LL NEVER LET YOU DOWN.
Why in the world do you need to pour asphalt over concrete?