Back in February, Breitbart News broke the story of how California Gov. Jerry Brown’s beloved high-speed rail was not going to be as “high-speed” as promised. We noted the comments of the Peer Review Group in a recent report on the project: “[I]it is unlikely that trains would actually be scheduled to run during normal hours of operation within the 30 minute or 2 hours 40 minute limits at the completion of the Phase I Blended system.”

At the time, I received calls from state authorities who were eager to contest that conclusion. But we never quite got around to getting an official quote on record. And it’s just as well, because last week, as the Los Angeles Times reported, the Peer Review Group delivered the message to the state legislature: “that ‘real world engineering issues’ will cause schedules for regular service to exceed the target of two hours and 40 minutes.”

That’s just one bit of bad news for the project. Another is that the project’s costs could far exceed the projected $68 billion, and rise past $200 billion. Moreover, the project continues to lose support among Democrats–first Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom; then former state Sen. Quentin Kopp, who chaired the high-speed rail project; and now (perhaps?) state Sen. Mark DeSaulnier, the chair of the Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing.

https://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-bullet-train-hearing-20140328,0,3123925.story#ixzz2xRv0xeKy