Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
California Set to Pay $1.65 Billion for Work on High-Speed Rail
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
July 16, 2019

Share

SACRAMENTO — California officials on Tuesday moved toward awarding a $1.65 billion contract to design and construct the tracks and system in the central San Joaquin Valley for the first segment of its beleaguered high-speed rail project.
The action taken by the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s board of directors was a first step in moving ahead with a contract they hope to award by next summer. It’s part of the authority’s plan to get track up and running in the Valley ahead of a 2022 deadline to meet the requirements of federal grants the Trump administration is now trying to take back.
The 119-mile segment would run from Merced to Bakersfield, passing through Fresno. U.S. and international businesses can apply for the contract, and whoever wins it would be responsible for designing and building rail infrastructure, as well as maintaining it for a period that could be as long as 30 years. A U.S. subsidiary of German rail giant Deutsche Bahn AG has been awarded a $30 million contract for early operation of the trains.

Construction Began in 2015

The $1.65 billion is a sliver of the $79 billion it’s estimated to cost to build a high-speed rail line between San Francisco and Los Angeles.
The contractor would design and build all of the necessary infrastructure, including track and systems, signal systems, automatic and positive train control, platforms, and overhead electrification systems and voltage stations. More than four years ago, construction began in the Valley on civil work such as viaducts and separating roadways from areas for track necessary to prepare for the full high-speed rail system.
California’s rail authority is first trying to finish track between the Valley and San Francisco before turning toward Los Angeles. Whoever wins the contract to design and build the first section would be likely to win similar contracts for the entire system from Bakersfield to San Francisco, said Frank Vacca, the project’s chief program manager.
“This contract envisions the successful bidder is guaranteed Bakersfield to San Francisco,” he said.

A Question About the Contract

Parts of the contract are essential for the state to meet a 2022 deadline under a funding agreement it has with the federal government. California and the Trump administration are locked in a legal battle over the money after the administration moved to revoke nearly $1 billion in federal money pledged to the project.
Businesses that have already contracted for other parts of the rail project could be barred from competing under certain conflict of interest requirements.
Board member Daniel Curtin raised concerns about that aspect.
“Losing the experience of those who are building our project now on the grounds that that’s going to give them a heads up on the next part of the project actually sounds counterintuitive to me,” he said.
Vacca, the operations officer, said those contractors still could be eligible for other elements of the project. He said the conflict of interest provisions are required by law.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Elon Musk Exiting Trump’s Team After Criticizing the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

DON'T MISS

Tulare Student Will Compete in Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals

DON'T MISS

Federal Trade Court Blocks Trump From Imposing Sweeping Tariffs Under Emergency Powers Law

DON'T MISS

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

DON'T MISS

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

DON'T MISS

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

DON'T MISS

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

DON'T MISS

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Faces Life in Prison for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

DON'T MISS

Tiger’s Son, Charlie Woods, Wins Team TaylorMade Invitational in Claiming 1st AJGA Event

UP NEXT

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

UP NEXT

Fresno Man Faces Life in Prison for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

UP NEXT

CIF Expands Field, Changes Medal Rules for State Track Championships Amid Trump Pushback

UP NEXT

Harvard Agrees to Relinquish Early Photos of Slaves, Ending a Long Legal Battle

UP NEXT

Is This Weekend’s 100-Plus Degree Heat a Hint on What’s Coming This Summer?

UP NEXT

Silence on E. Coli Outbreak Highlights How Trump Team’s Changes Undermine Food Safety

UP NEXT

Fresno Man Pleads Guilty to $1 Million PPP Loan Fraud

UP NEXT

California Opens Track-and-Field Finals to More Girls After Success of Trans Athlete

UP NEXT

Clovis Apartment Fire Displaces Residents, Damages 8 Units

UP NEXT

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Yer Vue

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

9 hours ago

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

9 hours ago

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

9 hours ago

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

9 hours ago

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

10 hours ago

Fresno Man Faces Life in Prison for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

11 hours ago

Tiger’s Son, Charlie Woods, Wins Team TaylorMade Invitational in Claiming 1st AJGA Event

11 hours ago

Wired Wednesday: The Human Side of Law Enforcement

11 hours ago

CIF Expands Field, Changes Medal Rules for State Track Championships Amid Trump Pushback

11 hours ago

Get Ready for Several Years of Killer Heat, Top Weather Forecasters Warn

13 hours ago

Elon Musk Exiting Trump’s Team After Criticizing the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

WASHINGTON — Elon Musk is leaving his government role as a top adviser to President Donald Trump after spearheading efforts to reduce and ov...

7 hours ago

Elon Musk listens as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP/Alex Brandon)
7 hours ago

Elon Musk Exiting Trump’s Team After Criticizing the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

8 hours ago

Tulare Student Will Compete in Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals

9 hours ago

Federal Trade Court Blocks Trump From Imposing Sweeping Tariffs Under Emergency Powers Law

9 hours ago

Why Did the California Senate Shunt a Cost-Cutting Housing Bill?

9 hours ago

Fresno Teachers Call for Probe After Superintendent Orders Up Dossier Against Union

President Donald Trump holds a chart next to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick as Trump delivers remarks on tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 2, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo
9 hours ago

US Court Blocks Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (not pictured) at the State Department in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 28, 2025. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz
9 hours ago

Rubio Says US Will Start Revoking Visas for Chinese Students

10 hours ago

CA Man’s 378-Year Sentence Overturned After Judge Rules Accuser May Have Made Up Charges

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend