California may be dreamin’ with their new federal stimulus money. Last month, the most populous state won $2 billion for its high-speed rail project that would connect passengers from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 2.5 hours (nearly half the driving time).
If completed, the rail route would be one of the fastest in the world, hitting speeds over 220 miles per hour. The cost of the ticket is estimated at $55, nearly half the cost of a typical airline ticket on such a route.
But is California simply kidding itself? The state’s budget is in big trouble, with cuts to education and national parks making big news. How could a project that could cost over $50 billion possibly go through? Officials claim $9 billion will come from bonds, $19 billion will arrive as federal grants, and $12 billion will be privately funded.
Though I realize that businesses in these cities have a lot to gain with such transportation, I don’t see a suffering economy allowing such generosity. Plus, who knows if federal budget money can be counted upon, since our future majority parties in Congress are unknown.
And all of this is supposed to be done by 2020? Keep dreaming, California.
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