Who knows what priorities will be set. All we do know is 2028 is the schedule start of service for Merced to Bakersfield.

Otherwise with the given flow of private funds to Virgin will this put an impetus on CAHSR to emphasis a connection to Palmdale?

Will Metro siphon HSR money to SC and forsake Pacheco tunnels and Valley electrification?

Will the Bay area approve prop to electrify Gilroy?

Will California suffer a cataclysmic disaster and financial calamity which will result in a quid pro quo of ARRA funds for a Trump-Pelosi pool party?





FUD Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> So ... working forward from that ... give it 3-5
> years for detailed design, and 5-8 years for
> acquiring right of way while doing the design (btw
> under federal rules they can't even accept land
> donations until the ROD is done). Then, if the
> money is there, they can start building (yes, I
> know, in the Valley they started building before
> buying all the right of way; that was a dumb move
> that cost construction delays and a lot of extra
> money, but was kind of forced by a couple of
> political problems, and should not be a standard
> way of doing things). A long tunnel through the
> Coast Range won't happen overnight - give it at
> least 5 years by itself, plus the rest of the
> work.
>
> Allowing for the usual hiccups, and assuming the
> money is there (which is unlikely), construction
> might start (with a 2021 ROD) around 2030, and
> take 8-10 years to finish and be usable. So 2040,
> minimum, to be open for service, again assuming
> the money is there to go beyond ROD.
>
> Those are not pessimistic assumptions; they're
> realistic for a big project with a big tunnel,
> assuming the money is there or can be reasonably
> expected when needed (i.e. the program for
> providing the money is in place). The ROD is the
> end of the environmental and preliminary
> engineering process (i.e. Project Approval), and
> the beginning of the middle part of the project
> development process (Design and Right of Way).