Ground broken for bridge over future high-speed rail route in Fresno

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Local leaders and lawmakers gathered successful Central Fresno connected Tuesday greeting to interruption crushed connected a people separation astatine McKinley and Golden State Boulevard.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority provided photos showing what the task volition look similar erstwhile it's complete.

The people separation volition beryllium implicit 400 feet agelong and 78 feet wide, expanding to 4 lanes for Fresno drivers.

It volition transportation postulation implicit the aboriginal high-speed tracks. A roundabout has already been completed connected McKinley Avenue adjacent Highway 99.

Former Fresno County Supervisor Henry Perea, who is connected the Rail Authority's Board of Directors, said the span volition besides see motorcycle lanes and pedestrian access.

"There is advancement connected High-Speed Rail. I deliberation that's the apical enactment connection to the people, not conscionable successful Fresno but the state, this task is happening," said Perea.

However, national lawmakers who situation the process are calling it 1 of the astir troubled megaprojects successful the nation.

Earlier this year, they sent a five-page missive to Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, saying, "The full strategy poses a increasing fiscal situation for the authorities due to the fact that the spread is already large, and the outgo has been expanding faster than identifiable."

Opponents besides constituent retired that the task was scheduled to outgo taxpayers $33 cardinal and beryllium completed 4 years ago. Now, the estimated outgo is astir $128 billion.

Perea confirmed those numbers but said gathering the erstwhile requirements was challenging due to the fact that the Rail Authority had not acquired the onshore needed to statesman the project.

"I deliberation we person to judge work for those mistakes that person been made. Are determination operation issues that we had? Yes. When we initially started the project, we had a batch of national dollars that necessitate that we interruption crushed by a definite constituent successful clip and beryllium completed by a definite constituent successful time," said Perea.

Fresno City Mayor Jerry Dyer said helium had reservations astir the task erstwhile it was initially proposed.

But he's since go excited by the thought aft learning however the High-Speed Rail Authority tin payment the metropolis of Fresno.

"This is our accidental to beryllium reconnected to that California system and besides different parts of the state, and it does truthful successful a mode that we're gonna beryllium very, precise arrogant of erstwhile this task is complete," said Mayor Dyer.

Rail Authority officials accidental the precedence is to person trains moving betwixt Merced and Bakersfield by 2033, and advancement to the northbound and southbound volition travel arsenic backing becomes available.

They added that the people separation astatine Golden State Boulevard and McKinley Avenue is expected to beryllium implicit by the extremity of 2025.

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