The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has released a compliance review into the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s (CHSRA) project.
The review concludes that the CHSRA is in default of the terms of its federal grant agreements and lacks a credible plan to complete the Early Operating Segment (EOS) by 2033.
The FRA evaluated two federal grants awarded to the project: a 929 million USD agreement from 2010 and a 3.07 billion USD agreement from 2024. These awards total roughly 4 billion USD in federal funding. The CHSRA has received approximately 6.9 billion USD in total federal support over the past fifteen years.
The FRA’s 310-page report includes nine key findings:
- Extensive Change Orders: CHSRA has executed numerous contract change orders and is likely to issue additional orders due to ongoing project delays.
- Rolling Stock Procurement Delays: CHSRA has missed the deadline for finalising its rolling stock procurement.
- Unresolved Funding Gap: There is at least a 7 billion USD shortfall to complete the EOS, with no credible strategy in place to secure additional funds.
- Timeline Viability: The authority does not have a viable path to complete the EOS by 2033, as required under its federal agreements.
- Funding Source Volatility: The project depends heavily on non-federal funding sources that are considered volatile and uncertain.
- Electrification Concerns: CHSRA lacks the necessary time and funding to electrify the EOS by 2033.
- Inadequate Contingency Planning: The project’s budget contingency is insufficient to address anticipated contractor delay claims.
- Ridership Projections: CHSRA has significantly overestimated expected ridership for the EOS.
- Project Delivery Capacity: The organisation does not currently possess the capacity required to deliver the EOS by the agreed deadline.
The FRA report concludes that the CHSRA’s performance to date raises concerns about whether federal investment in the project is justified.
The FRA has communicated its findings to CHSRA CEO Ian Choudri, and the CHSRA has 37 days to formally respond. If the issues are not resolved, the federal grants may be subject to termination.
US Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said:I promised the American people we would be good stewards of their hard-earned tax dollars. This report exposes a cold, hard truth: CHSRA has no viable path to complete this project on time or on budget. CHSRA is on notice — If they can’t deliver on their end of the deal, it could soon be time for these funds to flow to other projects that can achieve President Trump’s vision of building great, big, beautiful things again. Our country deserves high-speed rail that makes us proud – not boondoogle trains to nowhere.
The full report can be accessed here.
