1 year ago
22
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – President Donald Trump is present calling for an probe into the California High Speed Rail Authority.
The president began speaking connected the taxable connected Tuesday portion answering questions successful the Oval Office.
"The bid that's being built betwixt Los Angeles and San Francisco is the worst managed task I deliberation I've ever seen, and I've seen immoderate of the worst. Billions and billions, hundreds of billions of dollars implicit budget. In fact, I work wherever you tin instrumentality each azygous idiosyncratic connected the bid and get the finest limousine work and instrumentality them backmost and distant with limousines and you'd person hundreds of billions of dollars near over. It is the worst happening and we're going to commencement an probe into that due to the fact that it is not possible," the president said.
His 2 large complaints are the outgo and the lengthy timeline.
"They made it overmuch shorter. So present it's astatine small places mode distant from San Francisco and mode distant from Los Angeles. No, we're going to commencement a large probe connected that due to the fact that it's - I've ne'er seen thing similar it," Trump said.
Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer has been a proponent of high-speed obstruction for years and believes it volition assistance link Fresno and the Central Valley to the greater California economy. Still, Dyer said helium understands wherever Trump is coming from.
"I tin talk firsthand to the delays that we've seen successful Fresno and the interaction that that's had connected downtown Fresno and Chinatown, our quality to revitalize. And we've had a batch of roads closed, closed for longer than they should person been. But I besides recognize that this is the archetypal high-speed obstruction that's been developed successful the United States," Dyer said.
Youcentralvalley.com asked Dyer if the City of Fresno would cooperate with Trump's projected probe into the high-speed rail. Dyer said helium would privation to cognize what the national authorities finds retired astir the project. However, helium does not deliberation that means operation should beryllium halted.
"We each privation those questions answered. But the existent question is, bash we halt the project? And I deliberation that that would beryllium a mistake. I deliberation we request to proceed with the project, but we besides request to person questions answered. Why is it costing truthful overmuch and wherefore is it taking truthful overmuch time?" Dyer said.
Most importantly, helium said, helium does not privation national backing to adust out.
"There is simply a superior interest astir whether oregon not this task volition proceed to get national funding. And without national funding, this task cannot beryllium completed. And so, yes, that is simply a superior interest that I have. I don't disagree with the request to person questions answered astir the delays and the overruns of cost, but I bash judge we inactive request to get this task finished," Dyer said.
On the authorities level, Trump's concerns are successful enactment with galore enactment lawmakers successful Sacramento. State Assemblymember David Tangipa agreed with President Trump's concerns. This week helium introduced Assembly Bill 377, which calls connected the California High-Speed Rail Authority to supply a elaborate backing plan, specifically for the information of the task betwixt Bakersfield and Merced.
"My measure is to request a fiscal plan. The mode that I've looked astatine high-speed rail, it looks similar they started gathering the basement earlier they adjacent finished the plans for the 35th level connected a 100-foot skyscraper. That doesn't marque immoderate sense," Tangipa said.
If passed arsenic it is written now, Tangipa's bill would request the program by May 1, 2026.
"I'm thankful that we are getting a beauteous watchful eye. We request that transparency and accountability. And I'm conscionable gladsome that the president's looking astatine us," Tangipa said.
In January, Governor Newsom announced that operation began connected the railhead successful Shafter, which helium said paves the mode for crews to laic track.
At the clip of that event, a property merchandise from the governor's bureau said the Merced to Bakersfield information of the high-speed obstruction would beryllium completed and acceptable for rider work successful 2030 to 2033.
For the full magnitude of the project, authorities officials estimation the terms could outgo implicit $100 billion.
