When Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled his scaled-down blueprint for the California bullet train four years ago, he proposed building a 171-mile starter segment in the Central Valley that would begin operating in 2030 and cost $22.8 billion. Today, the blueprint is fraying — costs now exceed future funding, an official...
Will Amtrak Joe Save California’s Troubled High-Speed Rail Project?
Dear Joe, I should call you Mr. President, but there’s no time for formalities. You better move fast if you’re going to save California’s high-speed rail project. No malarkey: It has to be you. California has shown itself incapable of funding, managing, or building deep popular support for this $80...
Will Soria Jump on High-Speed Rail Executive Position?
Last week, Caltrans announced it hired Diana Gomez as director for the region covering Fresno County and the Central Valley. Gomez left her position as the Central Valley regional director of the High-Speed Rail project. Multiple sources have told Politics 101 that Fresno councilwoman Esmeralda Soria might be a fit...
Recognize the Progress of High-Speed Rail Project and Drop the Term ‘Boondoggle’
By Jim Beal and Scott Wiener, Special to CalMatters California’s High-Speed Rail project is under fire again, but history shows us that major infrastructure projects are almost always controversial. Before it was built, the Golden Gate Bridge was derided as financially unsound, legally dubious and an aesthetic blight. BART was...
Newsom Appoints Fresno’s Lee Ann Eager to Transportation Commission
Lee Ann Eager, a strong advocate for high-speed rail and president/CEO of the Fresno County Economic Development Corp. since 2009, was appointed to the California Transportation Commission by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday. The 13-member commission is responsible for programming and allocating funds for the construction of highways, passenger rail, transit,...
Michael Bloomberg Outlines Plans for Cleaner Buildings, Cars
SACRAMENTO — Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg would push for all new cars to be electric by 2035 and new buildings to produce zero carbon emissions by 2025 as part of clean energy plans he released this week. Bloomberg's latest climate plans build off his December plan to cut the United States'...
LA Times' Steve Lopez Is All Wet. Finish High-Speed Rail in Valley.
A recent Steve Lopez column titled “Let’s shift stalled bullet train funds to L.A. and San Francisco, where they’ll do some good” in the Los Angeles Times is once again a narrowminded view that perpetuates the decades-old problem of overlooking, and underestimating the value of California’s Central Valley. Even with...
Fire Burns Vacant Building on HSR Property in South Fresno
A fire burned a vacant building on a plot of land owned by the California High-Speed Rail Authority. Black smoke could be seen for miles — especially around highways 99 and 41 — when the fire started around 1 p.m. Listen to this article: CHSRA owns the plot of land...
Finally, Veterans Boulevard Is Going Somewhere Big and Exciting
Thirty-five years after it was envisioned by Fresno planners, long-stalled Veterans Boulevard moved forward Tuesday morning with phase one of a plan that ultimately should ease some of the city's most congested traffic. This phase is modest: a new $5.5 million section of Bullard Avenue helping residents south of Herndon...
Newsom Signs Clean Water Bill, Raises Funds in Valley Stop
Visiting a dot on the map in Fresno County called Tombstone, Gov. Gavin Newsom hoped to put an end to unsafe drinking water. The governor on Wednesday came to a home south of Sanger and signed the Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund (SB 200), which will provide up $130...