Brickbat: Train to Nowhere

A new bill in California would let the inspector general for the state's troubled high-speed rail project keep records secret from the public if officials think they could reveal weaknesses, like security risks or pending lawsuits. This has drawn criticism from people who say the project is already too far over budget and behind schedule. The rail system was originally approved to connect San Francisco and Los Angeles, cost $45 billion, and be completed by 2020. The project is still far from complete, with a new timeline stretching into the 2030s and the estimated cost ranging from $88 billion to $128 billion. Opponents of the bill argue taxpayers deserve transparency about how billions of dollars are being spent, and shielding information could hide more problems on a project that has faced rising costs and long delays.

Comments

[docduracoat]

You forgot to mention the train no longer goes from LA to SF.

It now goes along the Central Valley from Merced to Bakersfield.

From nowhere to nowhere.

It would be cheaper to buy all potential customers an airplane ticket than to build this train

[charliehall]

The people of Merced and Bakersfield would object to being called "nowhere". Kern County remains a major oil producing county, although most of its oil has now been extracted and expensive technologies are needed to continue the extraction. (It isn't just regulation that makes petroleum products expensive in California.)

[Fist of Etiquette]

Lol, security risks and pending lawsuits. I guess discovery isn't a thing.