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6d ago

U.S. Pulls Another $175 Million From California High-Speed Rail as State Seeks $1 Billion a Year

A newly released phased plan prioritizes a Merced–Bakersfield starter line targeting 2032.

An aerial image shows construction workers building the Hanford Viaduct over Highway 198 and past agricultural fields as part of the California High Speed Rail (CAHSR) transit project in Hanford, California, on February 12, 2025.
Metrolink commuter rail train at Santa Ana railway station near Los Angeles, United States, November 6, 2022.
Renderings of the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s Central Valley Station in Merced.
An Amtrak Surfliner train pulls into the Moorpark Train Station in Moorpark, California, on June 15, 2024.

Overview

  • Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy withdrew $175 million tied to four related projects, including grade separations, design work and a Madera station, following July’s $4 billion grant rescission.
  • California lawmakers are pressing for a $1 billion-per-year commitment from cap-and-trade revenues to provide predictable financing and to help attract private partners.
  • The California High‑Speed Rail Authority outlined three scenarios: a 171‑mile Merced–Bakersfield segment costing about $36.75 billion with service in 2032, an extension to Gilroy by 2038, and a further phase toward Palmdale/Los Angeles.
  • Roughly 119 miles are under construction in the Central Valley, with about $13 billion invested to date, even as the state sues to overturn the federal funding withdrawals.
  • CHSRA projections show the Merced–Bakersfield service would run an operating deficit, with estimated annual revenue of $39–56 million versus $121 million in costs, reinforcing FRA “serious concerns” cited by federal officials.