The "anything is better than nothing" approach sounds depressingly defeatist to me. But if the HSR is resolved to devolve it might as well build everything to standard heavy rail parameters. I mean loading gauges, tunnel heights, ruling gradients, the works.

The rush to orthodoxy seems to be driven by the fear that innovation is too risky,and that in particular electric units can't handle the grades of the Grapevine. So we dumb down and slavishly follow the hoary path of the UP thru the Tehachapis. By all means build it to grades that a diesel can handle. Then if the HSR turns out to be a commercial failure, as the highway and airline lobbies predict, the tracks, tunnels and all can be sold to the UP for freight operations. The taxpayers will get some of their money back.