The California High-Speed Rail Authority has issued a detailed response to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) following the agency’s proposed termination of two key funding agreements.
In a 14-page letter sent this week to FRA Acting Administrator Drew Feeley, Authority CEO Ian Choudri described the proposed action as unwarranted and based on a mischaracterisation of the project’s progress and plans.
The FRA had cited concerns over construction delays, financial gaps, and a lack of progress as reasons to reconsider the funding agreements. In reply, Choudri strongly contested these points, arguing that the FRA’s conclusions rely on selective use of data and methodologies that do not accurately reflect the current status of the project.
Ian Choudri, CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority said:Termination of the Cooperative Agreements is unwarranted and unjustified. FRA’s conclusions are based on an inaccurate, often outright misleading, presentation of the evidence. Among other things, the FRA distorts data that the Authority has furnished to the FRA, includes citations to reports that do not support its conclusions, and employs opaque and disingenuous methodologies.
Choudri pointed to significant construction milestones already achieved in California’s Central Valley. These include the completion of the 4,741-foot San Joaquin River Viaduct in Fresno and the Hanford Viaduct in Kings County. The Authority reported that 69 miles of guideway and 53 structures have been completed, with 30 more structures currently under construction across Madera, Fresno, Kings, and Tulare counties.
The letter also references ongoing work, such as the development of a railyard to support construction operations and progress on environmental approvals, with full environmental clearance obtained for the route stretching from San Francisco to Los Angeles.
Choudri wrote:I must also take this opportunity to dispute, in the strongest possible terms, the misleading claim that the Authority has made ‘minimal progress to advance construction’. The Authority’s work has already reshaped the Central Valley. We have built many of the viaducts, overpasses, and underpasses on which the first 119 miles of high-speed rail track will run.
In response to concerns over a 7 billion USD funding gap, the Authority highlighted California Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposal to extend the state’s Cap-and-Trade programme—now referred to as Cap-and-Invest—which is projected to generate approximately 1 billion USD annually through 2045. The Authority also intends to issue a Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) to attract potential private sector partners for future phases of the project.
Choudri’s letter challenges the inconsistencies in the FRA’s oversight. The Authority noted that an FRA monitoring report from October 2024 had not identified major compliance concerns, and stated that no significant changes had occurred since that review to justify a reversal of position.
The response concludes with a call for continued collaboration between the federal government and the state of California on the high-speed rail programme. Choudri emphasised the potential economic and social benefits of the project, including job creation. Since construction began, more than 15,300 construction jobs have been created, with a majority going to Central Valley residents.
Choudri said:Hostility to public investments in high-speed rail, and to California’s leadership—hostility that dates back to FRA’s initial attempt to revoke federal funding to the Program in May 2019—appears to be the real basis for the proposed determination.
I hope that FRA and the Authority can move forward to work together to support this Program—a project with a big future and great promise to better the lives of Californians and spur economic growth in the state and across the nation.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority is currently managing construction on 171 miles between Merced and Bakersfield, and continues to release regular updates on project milestones.
