California punts on high-speed rail plan as furor grows over new $231B price tag
California's High-Speed Rail Authority postponed a vote on its business plan after the project's estimated cost rose to $231 billion, drawing criticism from lawmakers and budget watchdogs over transparency and legal compliance. The plan faces scrutiny for not meeting state legal requirements, particularly due to unapproved station changes, and for a lack of public input ahead of the scheduled vote. Governor Gavin Newsom has expressed support for the project despite earlier skepticism, while board members are divided on management authority and oversight.
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Politics California punts on high-speed rail plan as furor grows over new $231B price tag By Josh Koehn Published April 29, 2026, 7:23 p.m. ET California’s bullet train can’t catch a break. The state’s High-Speed Rail Authority board punted a vote Wednesday on its long-awaited business plan — after it was revealed that the project’s cost had ballooned to a staggering $231 billion. Lawmakers and budget hawks have ripped the Los Angeles-to-San Francisco train project as incomplete, opaque and possibly illegal, with the authority moving to delay a vote until next month. 3 This rendering of high-speed rail in California has been called a fantasy compared to where the project currently sits.
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