Duffy moves to defund California high-speed rail after blistering federal review

It could beryllium the extremity of the enactment for the "train to nowhere."

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has released a scathing study exposing what helium said is the unfeasibility of California's long-troubled high-speed obstruction task – threatening to propulsion the plug connected a program that already has the national authorities connected the hook for $6.9 cardinal portion Californians are underwriting an further $9 billion.

Duffy said that the national authorities is moving to terminate astir $4 cardinal it has presently obligated to the task unless the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) tin beryllium it is tenable.

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Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy is threatening to propulsion national backing for California's long-troubled high-speed obstruction project. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr. | David Paul Morris/Bloomberg)

He blasted it arsenic a "boondoggle," arsenic zero miles of high-speed way person been laid since crushed was breached 10 years ago, and the outgo continues to balloon.

The 300-page report, released by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) connected Wednesday, examined the task and recovered delays, missed deadlines, mismanagement, waste, skyrocketing costs, fund shortfalls and overrepresentation of projected ridership. 

The study states that contempt the wealth already plowed into the project, determination is simply a $7 cardinal backing spread to implicit a subset of the archetypal signifier successful the Central Valley from Merced to Bakersfield, known arsenic the Early Operating Segment (EOS).

"This study exposes a cold, hard truth: CHSRA has nary viable way to implicit this task connected clip oregon connected budget," Duffy said Wednesday. "CHSRA is connected announcement — If they can’t present connected their extremity of the deal, it could soon beryllium clip for these funds to travel to different projects that tin execute President Trump’s imaginativeness of gathering great, big, beauteous things again.

"Our state deserves high-speed obstruction that makes america arrogant – not boondoggle trains to nowhere."

Ongoing operation of the California slug bid project. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images | George Rose/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump has besides referred to the task arsenic a boondoggle and said past period that it is "the worst outgo overrun I’ve ever seen. It’s like, wholly retired of control." 

The task was initially touted arsenic a two-phase visionary strategy connecting Los Angeles to San Francisco, and aboriginal northbound to Sacramento, and southbound to San Diego.

Since then, the project's footprint has been dramatically reduced from an 800-mile conception to a 171-mile segment. 

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The FRA estimates the EOS conception of Phase 1 volition present outgo betwixt $35.4 cardinal and $37.8 cardinal excluding financing costs, importantly higher than the CHSRA’a ain estimation of $28.8 billion, creating a backing spread of $6.6 to $9 billion. The afloat outgo of Phase 1 is successful the scope of $106 to $128 billion, per the report. 

Duffy said helium promised the American radical that the Trump medication would beryllium bully stewards of their taxation dollars with the study focusing connected 2 grants awarded to the project: a $929 cardinal cooperative statement from 2010 and a $3.07 cardinal cooperative statement from past year. Cooperative agreements let the national authorities to clasp important engagement successful however a project is carried out.

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Other cardinal findings revealed that the project faces ongoing—and apt increasing—contractor outgo overruns owed to delays and that the CHSRA failed to finalize contracts for its high-speed trainsets connected time.

Additionally, the FRA concludes determination is nary viable way for CHSRA to implicit the EOS by the promised 2033 deadline and that the authority’s reliance connected volatile, non-federal backing sources — similar cap-and-trade gross — poses important fiscal risk.

Despite important national enactment and funding, the FRA said that the CHSRA does not person the capableness to present the afloat CHSR System, nor adjacent the $7 cardinal backing gap. 

"CHSRA has not learned from its mistakes and mismanagement and has truthful failed to make an enactment susceptible of efficaciously and efficiently managing task delivery," the study reads. "Despite the important scope reduction, the CHSR Project inactive continues to look galore delays and outgo overruns. At this rate, CHSRA volition ne'er implicit the CHSR System."

President Donald Trump has criticzed California Gov. Gavin Newsom for the delays. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images/Daila Pena)

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The FRA besides accused the CHSRA of not acting successful bully religion successful making representations to the FRA regarding its quality to implicit the EOS with a tenable fund and schedule. 

The FRA wrote to the CHSRA and said it has up to 37 days to respond, aft which it could question repayment of the 2 corporate statement grants totaling $4 billion.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s bureau directed Fox News to a property league helium held past month, erstwhile helium discussed a revised fund program for the state. He said the authorities was committed to completing the task and that the revised program would allocate $1 cardinal each twelvemonth for the adjacent 20 years utilizing funds from the state’s cap-and-trade program.

Fox News Digital reached retired to CHSRA for remark but did not instantly person a response.