OPB,

ATSF did a study to replace the shared Tehachipi with a route across what is now Edwards to the foot of the mountains just north of where the CA water project is today, they would go under Tejon, from the Rt. 138 side, with several long tunnels, and then northeast descending along the foothills on a grade much less than Tehachipi into Bakersfield. ATSF HS&TS did a great article on this project that was planned right before WWI.

Even longer tunnels designed for shared use that could be engineered today, would make the "ATSF" route option far more feasible, today. It's not infeasible, and could be a shorter and more cost effective alternative than any Tehachipi option.

Unfortunately, this option makes "too much" sense. It would allow an initial connection with Palmdale and LA-LV, while allowing for an ultimate VHS-Super HST option along the I-5 to be constructed in the future, (if and when true LAX-SFO demand is sufficient/under three hours). It would be a better connection for existing Valley services into LA. It would probably save billions, and could giv a better freight connection for both UP (to the Palmdale cutoff) and BNSF by relieve pressure on Tehachipi, and allow for more cement traffic (part of this connection already goes half way from Mojave). The fatal hurdle, of course, would be the small portion of the Tejon Ranch it would need to traverse.

As to the politics, they still suck, as this project has never had the kind of oversight or attention it deserved. It's just not as bad as it was, not because politicians have suddenly become saints, but because now reality has started to set in about what it costs to do some of these things, especially if you've already decided to do them in the costliest way possible.