US Transportation Secretary, Sean Duffy, announced on July 16 that the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has terminated two grant agreements with the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA), cancelling $US 4bn in federal funding not yet spent by the authority.

In his letter informing CHSRA CEO, Ian Choudri, of the termination, FRA acting administrator, Drew Feeley, says that the authority has breached commitments made in the FY10 Agreement and the FSP Agreement. They require the first section of the California’s proposed high-speed network, the 273.6km early operating segment (EOS) from Merced to Bakersfield, to be completed by December 31 2033.

The lack of a viable path for CHSRA to complete the EOS in line with its commitments was one of the nine core findings of an FRA compliance review. Its findings were published on June 4, when FRA formally gave CHSRA notice of its intention to terminate the federal grant agreements.

CHSRA provided an initial response to FRA on June 11 and a final response on July 7. Having reviewed them, “FRA has determined that nothing in these responses cause FRA to reconsider it factual findings or its conclusion that CHSRA cannot deliver the EOS as promised,” Feeley’s letter says.

“After 16 years and roughly $US 15bn spent, not one high-speed track has been laid by CHSRA,” the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) says. It adds that FRA will now examine how the $US 4bn saved can be made available to “viable and meritorious passenger rail projects.”

Duffy has directed FRA to review other obligated and unobligated grants related to the CHSRA project. USDOT will consult the Department of Justice on the findings of the FRA compliance review, including potentially recovering federal funding for the California high-speed project “and other potential issues under federal law.”

California goes to law

In response, on July 17, the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, announced that CHSRA is suing the Trump administration. The lawsuit alleges that termination of the federal funding agreements is “petty, political retribution,” motivated by the president’s “personal animus toward California and the high-speed rail project, not by facts on the ground.”

According to Newsom, the lawsuit comes as the project is entering the tracklaying phase, following the completion of 96km of alignment and over 50 major structures on the EOS.

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