03/29/2024

Private Firms Question California High-Speed Rail Funding

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Businesses that might bid to build a high-speed rail network across California are questioning whether there will be enough government funding to complete the complex and ambitious project.

That picture emerged from documents the companies submitted to the state rail authority overseeing the project, which solicited ideas for how it should approach building a first segment of 300 miles of track by 2022.

Critics have cited the lack of private investors as a major flaw in planning what would be the nation’s largest transportation infrastructure project, with a cost estimated at $68 billion. So the California High-Speed Rail Authority asked firms to suggest how to reduce costs, speed up construction and attract outside money.

In response it received 36 submissions from firms including global construction and engineering giants AECOM, Siemens and Parsons. The rail authority released the documents to The Associated Press under a Public Records Act request.

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