California Republican leader: It’s time to pull the plug on high-speed rail | Opinion
An “informational” hearing on a multi-billion project should bring clarity.
But during the state Senate Transportation Committee’s informational hearing on California’s High-Speed Rail master plan on recently, we got the opposite. We heard words like “lacks transparency,” “risky”, “unrealistic,” and “incomplete” from the project’s inspector general Benjamin Belnap and the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office. They were describing the high-speed rail’s updated business plan. Even a Democratic colleague, a self-described enthusiast of the high-speed rail, called the draft business plan a “disaster.”
At some point, this Legislature must face reality and pull the plug.
At a time when high-speed rail is already facing intense scrutiny over transparency and accountability, what is the response from Sacramento Democrats? They introduced a measure containing a confidentiality clause that will allow the inspector general to keep certain reports confidential if they reveal vulnerabilities that could be exploited.
I’m shaking my head. This makes no sense. You can’t make this stuff up.
Eighteen years ago, Democrats sold California on a high-speed rail project that was supposed to be a bold investment in the future: a modern transportation system connecting San Francisco to Los Angeles in under three hours, reducing traffic congestion, and bringing California into the ranks of countries with world-class rail systems. Conceptually, an integrated and modern rail system sounds like a good idea. Unfortunately, this was a three-card monte.
It will go down as the most wasteful government project in California history.
After nearly two decades, billions of taxpayer dollars, and endless promises, Californians are still no closer to riding a high-speed train between the Bay Area and Los Angeles. The latest California High-Speed Rail Authority Business Plan only confirms what many in Sacramento already know but won’t publicly admit. This project is financially unsustainable, operationally uncertain, and impossible to finish as originally promised.
When voters approved California Proposition 1A in 2008, they were told the project would cost approximately $33 billion and be finished by 2020.
Today, that figure has grown astronomically, now reaching levels comparable to the entire state budget. The 2026 California High-Speed Rail estimate puts the total cost for Phase 1 from San Francisco to Los Angeles at $231 billion, and this does not take into account any borrowing.
What’s even more astonishing is that certain portions of the rail have been reduced to single tracks, meaning the train would share them with freight and Metrolink. How is this considered high-speed rail?
The California High-Speed Rail Authority continues moving the goalposts. First, Californians were promised a statewide system. Then the focus shifted to “blended systems” and phased construction. Now, the project’s immediate priority is a 171-mile segment connecting Merced to Bakersfield.
Let’s be honest: Californians did not vote for a train from Merced to Bakersfield.
Californians were sold a lemon. What we have today is not a promise of a bullet train, but a very costly, slightly faster train in the Central Valley that still requires passengers to transfer to other systems to reach major urban centers. This is no longer the project voters approved. It is a dramatically scaled-down version, but is demanding unlimited funding.
Even worse, funding for the latest plan is hypothetical at best. The project has touted that it will seek public-private investment to help fund the cost, realizing that it is burning through funds at an unsustainable pace. But Helen Kerstein of the Legislative Analyst’s Office said in her late April presentation to legislators that investors are cold to the proposal and consider the project “not to be creditworthy.”
In plain terms, California Democrats and this governor are trapped in a sunk-cost fallacy. Because so much money has already been spent, leaders feel compelled to keep spending more. My dad has always taught me that the first step to getting yourself out of a hole is to stop digging. California should do the same.
The 2026 business plan for high-speed rail should serve as a wake-up call, not another excuse for delay. Proponents of the high-speed rail had a vision, but now it appears to be a fantasy.
Sometimes leadership is not about doubling down on bad investment. Sometimes it is about recognizing reality, cutting losses, and moving on. At some point, responsible leadership means admitting when a project has failed.
As vice chair of the Senate Transportation Committee, I have been calling for the Legislature to make the difficult decision to pull the plug on this rail fail. I urge you to contact Gov. Gavin Newsom and your state representatives and tell them to pull the plug. Let’s redirect those dollars to vital infrastructure projects across the state that would be better for all Californians and that can deliver real solutions.
Californians deserve better.
Tony Strickland represents California’s 36th Senate District.
This story was originally published May 17, 2026 at 5:00 AM with the headline "California Republican leader: It’s time to pull the plug on high-speed rail | Opinion."