Highcost rail

The cost of California’s bullet train keeps rising, completion dates are stretching out and political support is fading. But for all its problems, the highspeed rail project remains a goal worth supporting.

It’s not naive to tout the advantages of a twohour and 20minute trip between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Congestion, pollution and wasted airport time can be reduced. Coastal centers with jobs, colleges and industries will be linked with the Central Valley as never before. Faraway housing will draw closer. California can be knit together.

That’s a rosy vision that needs implementing, and the latest numbers show how hard it will be. Costs have bumped up by $3 billion to $80 billion in two years due to inflation, legal delays and construction hitches. That’s the nature of a major, unique infrastructure challenge, but there still needs to be tougher management.

Bigger problems remain. Only about a third of the budget can be counted on now. There’s zero support for the train in the Trump administration. The project has near orphan status in Sacramento where garrulous Gov. Gavin Newsom has little to say and avoids the topic.

Against these odds, the rail route is plowing ahead. Some 100 miles of the center stretch linking Madera and Bakersfield are being built. The electrified Caltrain line is destined to bring the super train up the Peninsula to downtown San Francisco. A stripped down system could be operating this decade from the Central Valley to the Bay Area.

That’s encouraging. But to be successful, the project needs to be built to its full 520mile length. That won’t happen without serious support from state lawmakers and federal authorities who are missing in action. California has a chance to plan its future, redesign transportation and foster innovation. Highspeed rail deserves a chance to go forward.