Posted on 01/16/2018 3:22:04 PM PST by Olog-hai
Officials increased the cost estimate for the first phase of California’s high speed rail project by 35 percent on Tuesday, to $10.6 billion.
That would put the entire cost of the train from San Francisco to Los Angeles at roughly $67 billion, although officials said they hope to recover the newly announced costs later. […]
The $2.8 billion price jump is for a 119-mile (191-kilometer) segment in the Central Valley, which is partially under construction. The fresh costs are due to trouble acquiring rights of way for the track, the need to build more barriers along the tracks and other items.
It’s the latest cost spike in a project that’s been plagued by delays and cost overruns. When voters approved $10 billion in bonds for the project in 2008, officials estimated the project would cost $40 billion. …
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
Wait till President Trump cuts off the Federal money for this boondoggle. The howling will be like sweet, sweet music.
L
It doesn’t matter what it costs. It is just OPM (Other People’s Money).
Ultimately, yes, but it is still outrageous when it goes as high as it does.
This is just a wealth distribution plan. From California taxpayers to the Democrats and their friends.
We all know that everything in Kalifornica costs more. Remember the old saying, “It only cost a little more to go first class”? There you have it.
I'm just wondering who in LA wants to take a high speed train to Bakersfield? I mean, do any of the beautiful people of SF or LA actually know anyone in Bakersfield?
I agree. They have a massive pension debt that they’re desperate to pay for...that’s part of why they raised fuel taxes.
Frankly, I don't think it will ever be completed. There is no economic need, it provides zero benefits to the state, and electricity will cost far too much to run it with the California infatuation for zero "carbon footprint." Businesses and people will be fleeing the state. Besides, I can grab a seat on one of the hundred daily flights between the Bay Area and the LA Area and they leave every 30 minutes or so.
We should not stand in their way, nor should those of us outside California that will never ride on it fund it.
Didn’t the entire Apollo Program cost “only” $50 billion??
And that included six landings on the Moon
“officials said they hope to recover the newly announced costs later.”
Yeah, that’ll happen.
pretty soon the estimate will be back up to the original 98 billion before it was lowered by artificial political fiat in order to make the project seem more palatable.
We already have a way to get from Southern California to the San Francisco Bay area for an affordable price in under two hours. It is called Southwest Airlines and it does not cost the taxpayers a dime.
From the article: "The fresh costs are due to trouble acquiring rights of way for the track, . . ."
Won't Pelosi wail, "Don't tell me they're going to eject people from their little piece of the American Dream! Break up families? Think of the children!"?
" . . . the need to build more barriers along the tracks . . "
Won't Pelosi wail, "Barriers don't work! And they're racist!"?
" . . . and other items."
Won't Pelosi say, "I'M one of those other items. Where's my envelope?"
The taxpayers to get more bullets to their wallets is what it amounts to.
In the end it will cost over 2 trillion dollars to build this thing.
Oh, it does, for the airport infrastructure and federal security, with some of that built into the airfare. The government’s tendrils are into everything.
Wait until the gangbangers and other assorted riff raff start riding the trains. They will graffiti up those beautiful trains into uglies lickity split.
They were counting on hillary.
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