Rail in the US, is shit... This is why...

California's 'train to nowhere' embarks on its second act

By Anabel Sosa

The Trump administration and California appear to have officially severed ties as the state moves forward with the long-delayed high-speed rail without the help of federal funds.

On Dec. 23, the California High-Speed Rail Authority pulled the lawsuit it filed after the Trump administration scrapped $4 billion in funding this summer for the bullet train that would stretch from Los Angeles to San Francisco. The rail authority has now decided to seek funding from a private investor as early as summer 2026.

“Moving forward without the Trump administration’s involvement allows the Authority to pursue proven global best practices used successfully by modern high-speed rail systems around the world,” a spokesperson for the rail authority said in a statement.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority, along with Attorney General Rob Bonta, sued the administration in July, with support from Gov. Gavin Newsom, after the U.S. Department of Transportation withdrew its Biden- and Obama-era funding. That lawsuit was dismissed last Tuesday after the rail authority decided it will seek funding elsewhere.

The Trump administration has lambasted the long-delayed railway project since Donald Trump’s first term in office, calling it a “train to nowhere” and even recently saying there was “no viable plan” to finish. The rail authority last week barked back, saying that the Trump administration “is not a reliable, constructive or trustworthy partner,” according to a spokesperson.

Ian Choudri, the CEO of the rail authority, who was appointed to the position in August 2024, officially confirmed he will scout private investors to help reinvigorate the project. The investor would need to commit to a 40- to 60-year partnership, which Choudri told the Fresno Bee is a typical time frame for a project of this scale. He said the investors would pay up-front costs of design and construction and also be responsible for operating and maintaining the railway. About 30 private investors have reportedly already expressed interest in the partnership.

The agency already secured $20 billion in state funding this September –– which will translate to $1 billion per year for the next 20 years –– but Choudri said the project still needs more funding.

The rail project was approved by California voters in 2008. It broke ground in 2015 but has since endured numerous delays. Under the first Trump administration, high-speed rail was already heavily criticized, and in 2019, a portion of federal funding was initially pulled, marking tensions for the project. One of the main sources of the project’s delays was reportedly due to officials purchasing $1.4 billion worth of properties across 171 miles that run through the Central Valley, where the railway tracks are slated to be laid.

Nearly 80 miles of guideway are already complete, the rail authority said. SFGATE has previously reported that rail officials also plan to spend about $8 billion buying dozens of residential units and more than 100 businesses that exist across the Bay Area section of the railway.

Choudri told the Bee that he also plans to seek more money from the state Legislature once it returns to session next year. He plans to seek changes to Senate Bill 198, a law that limits the amount of funding the high-speed rail can receive in construction of the railway outside of the Central Valley to $500 million.