California high speed rail project news
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NewsCalifornia high speed train request for proposals approved
USA: The California High-Speed Rail Authority board has approved the release of a request for proposals for the supply and maintenance of high speed trainsets. Alstom Transportation and Siemens Mobility have prequalified for the process. Their proposals are to be submitted this autumn, with the authority ...
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NewsNetwork Rail Consulting awarded California high speed rail contract
USA: The consultancy arm of British infrastructure manager Network Rail has been awarded a $73·2m contract to provide rail systems engineering services to the California High-Speed Rail Authority. Network Rail Consulting will be supported by subconsultants Egis and Ricardo, as well as local companies C2PM DR ...
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NewsCalifornian high speed train shortlist announced
USA: The California High-Speed Rail Authority has shortlisted two qualified bidders for a planned contract to supply high speed trainsets for the project. They are Alstom Transportation Inc and Siemens Mobility Inc. The authority expects to release the request for proposals in the coming months, followed ...
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NewsRevised California high speed rail track and electrification design RFQ issued
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority has released a new request for qualifications for a contract to provide design services for the track and overhead electrification systems. The contract has an estimated value of up to $131·2m, plus options. It would cover high-level designs for track and ...
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In depthUSA: Coastal corridor offers a growth blueprint
With Amtrak seeking to develop medium-distance corridor services linking selected city pairs across the USA, Dave Lustig looks to southern California, where inter-city passenger trains offer an attractive alternative to gridlocked highways.
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NewsCalifornia High-Speed Rail Authority begins procurement of 355 km/h trains
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority has begun the process of procuring six electric trainsets capable of operating at 355 km/h. On August 24 the board approved the release of a request for qualifications. Responses are to be submitted by prospective manufacturers in November, with a request ...
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NewsHigh speed rail training programme
USA: The seventh intake has completed the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s free 12-week pre-apprenticeship programme, which provides hands-on construction industry training for military leavers, at-risk young adults, minority and low-income populations in the Central Valley. The Central Valley Training Centre has been developed by CHSRA in ...
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In depthUSA: Electrification comes to Bay Area commuters
Caltrain is updating and electrifying one of the oldest commuter rail operations in the USA, which will bring a range of environmental and social benefits, as Executive Director Michelle Bouchard and Programme Manager Pranaya Shrestha explain to Dave Lustig.
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NewsCalifornia high speed rail station design contract awarded
USA: The California High-Speed Rail Authority has awarded Foster+Partners and Arup a $35m contract to provide design services for Merced, Fresno, Kings/Tulare and Bakersfield stations on the initial 275 route-km segment of the line. The 30-month contract includes identifying right-of-way and utility relocation requirements. A separately ...
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In depthViewpoint: California’s high speed programme is back on track
After years of twists and turns, the most ambitious and controversial high speed rail project in America is moving purposefully towards fruition. Andy Kunz, President & CEO of the US High Speed Rail Association, and Ezra Silk, Co-Founder of the US High Speed Rail Coalition, explain how the programme has reached this point.
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NewsCalifornia high speed starter section set for completion as state funding finalised
USA: The state of California appears finally to be on course to complete the Initial Operating Section of its high speed rail network between Bakersfield and Merced after the programme was allocated $4·2bn in the annual state budget on June 30.
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NewsFRA compares global high speed rail noise mitigation standards
USA: Ricardo has completed a study for the Federal Railroad Administration which aims to improve the accuracy of comparisons of global high speed rail noise reduction standards and their costs. The report, High Speed Rail: Cost of Compliance for Noise Mitigation Procedures, has now been published ...
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NewsCalifornia reverts to double-track high speed line through Central Valley
USA: In a marked reversal of policy since late 2020, the California High Speed Rail Authority’s 2022 Draft Business Plan says it will now complete the initial section of the planned San Francisco – Los Angeles high speed line through the Central Valley as a double-track electrified railway.
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NewsLegal settlement restores almost $1bn in California high speed rail funding
USA: The federal government has agreed to return $929m in grants to the California High Speed Rail Authority following the settlement of legal proceedings with the state of California.
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NewsSingle-track corridor to launch Californian high speed service by 2030
USA: California High Speed Rail Authority’s Revised Draft Business Plan envisages the completion of a 270 km ‘interim service line’ which would initially be mostly single track, and sets out revised cost and ridership estimates for the project.
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NewsEnvironmental approval marks milestone in California’s truncated high speed programme
USA: The board of the California High-Speed Rail Authority on September 10 approved the Final Environmental Impact Statement for an 80 km section of the planned high speed railway between Merced and Fresno, known as the ‘Central Valley Wye’. The formal approval means that environmental clearance has ...
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NewsCalifornia High-Speed Rail Authority issues Track & Systems RFQ
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority has issued a request for qualifications for its Phase I Track & Systems contract, which has an estimate value of $1·6bn. This would cover design, construction, and testing of the trackwork, electrification, signalling, train control and other railway systems for the 190 km route ...
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NewsCalifornia High-Speed Rail Authority publishes northern route preferences
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority has published its recommended alignments for two sections of the planned line in northern California. Public feedback will now be sought before the board makes a decision in September. Draft environmental documents would then be published in December 2019 and March 2020, ahead of a ...
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NewsFederal funding for California high speed rail pulled
USA: The Federal Railroad Administration announced on May 16 that it had terminated a $928·6m 2010 funding agreement with the California High-Speed Rail Authority. This follows a notice of intention to cancel the funding which had been issued by the FRA in March, after newly-elected Governor of California Gavin ...
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NewsFRA pulls funds from California high speed project
USA: The Federal Railroad Administration announced on February 19 that it intended to cancel $929m of federal grant destined for the high speed rail project in California. In addition, FRA ‘is actively exploring every legal option to seek the return from California of $2·5bn in Federal funds FRA previously granted ...