California recently launched its high-rail project that may revolutionize public transportation. The bullet train will travel from Fresno to Los Angeles.
The $68 billion project was launched by the California High-Speed Rail Authority. Though it had a rough start over two years, the project is finally underway on the first 29 miles of the system. The trains will travel at about 200 miles per hour from San Francisco to L.A.
“We feel very confident that this program is going to go forward, ” said Rail Authority Chairman Dan Richard.
“We’re really now moving to a point where continuous construction begins. This is where people are going to begin seeing physical manifestations of the project being built,” added Richard.
The groundbreaking will be led by Governor Jerry Brown, who wants this project to be part of a chance to curb climate change by boosting investment in public transportation.
“High-speed rail will take us from the past to the future, from the south to Fresno and north,” said Brown. “It is truly a California project bringing us together today.”
While Brown and Richard believe the project will be beneficial to California, others say the bullet train is too expensive to undertake.
“We all support progress,” said former Fresno mayor Jim Patterson. “What we don’t support is financial foolishness and government deceit. That’s what we have here. This is a sham event. They don’t have the money to build this … but this is what a one-party dictatorial government can do.”
While voters approved a $9 billion bond for the system, the ballooning cost has brought criticism that the bullet train is not feasible under the state and federal budget. Some Republicans vow to cut federal funding for the bullet train in the new session of Congress.
Despite the criticism, some Republicans see the groundbreaking of the bullet train construction as a positive aspect of California’s public transportation. “High-speed rail brings attention and focus back to city centers,” said Republican Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin. “It is going to be easier for people to live in the middle of the state and do business elsewhere.
“We need to be critiqued, but we still need to build,” said Governor Brown.
