SACRAMENTO – California’s high-speed rail program is being showcased at the California State Fair.

There you can get an up-close look at what the trains will look like and decide for yourself if the project will be a benefit or a multi-billion dollar blunder.

For the first time, a replica of a California high-speed railcar is on display at this year’s California State Fair.

“The train itself is about a foot wider than a traditional Amtrak train,” said Melissa Figueroa, a spokesperson for the high-speed rail. 

The exhibit is an effort by the state to highlight the electric train program.

“Our train will go Los Angeles to San Francisco 220 miles an hour in under three hours,” Figueroa said.

Voters approved building high-speed rail in 2008 but since then the program has fallen behind schedule and now costs billions over the original budget.

“It is a change and change can be difficult, however, I would say that we are making tremendous progress every day,” Figueroa said.

This week, two new rail overcrossing were opened in Fresno County but there’s a lot more work to complete.

“You have to get all of the infrastructure done first, you have to move utilities you have to work with the landowners you have to build all of these massive structures,” Figueroa said.

The first phase will run from Merced to Bakersfield, so how could people use high-speed rail to get from Sacramento to Los Angeles?

“You can take rail from sacramento or the Bay Area into that Merced station and do a cross-platform transfer to high-speed rail and go south from there,” Figueroa said.

Many people checking out the exhibit say it might make them fly less. But some wonder if it will ever be fully built.

Last December, the project received $3 billion from the federal government to continue construction.

The first 171 miles of track are scheduled to open in 2030 at the earliest. 

Southern California’s job market is a very mixed picture: Unemployment in June was the highest since 2022’s start, though the last time hiring was faster was in early 2023.

My trusty spreadsheet reviewed non-seasonally adjusted jobs data for Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties released Friday, July 19 from California’s Employment Development Department.

Let’s start with the region’s unemployment rate, which ran at 5.4% in June – up from 4.6% the previous month and 4.7% a year earlier. Unemployment in June was 5.9% in LA County, 5.3% in the IE and 4% in Orange County.

The last time the region’s joblessness rate was higher was January 2022 when it ran 5.6%. But unemployment typically rises in June as many government educators start their summer breaks.

Yet, this year’s 0.8 percentage-point jobless increase from May is larger than the average 0.5-point increase in the same period in pre-pandemic 2015-19. It’s one hint of a seemingly cooled regional job market in recent months.

Unemployment trends are compiled from a survey of households. When government researchers asked employers about staffing, however, a more optimistic picture appears.

Bosses in Southern California had 8.02 million workers in June – an increase of 22,800 in a month and up 115,100 over 12 months. This hiring equals 1.5% job growth in a year – the swiftest pace since January 2023. The Inland Empire had a 1.9% increase, Orange County was up 1.4% and Los Angeles County rose 1.3%.

Remember, the Federal Reserve is using higher interest rates to slow an overheated economy. In addition, various uncertainties – including national politics – can be unnerving. So, numerous employers and shoppers are trimming expenses.

But stubborn inflation continues to wallop household budgets. That may be pushing some folks back to the job market. Southern California’s workforce – a metric combining the employed and the unemployed – is growing at its fastest pace in eight months.

The four-county region’s job market, by key industry niches …

Private Education/Health: 1.53 million, off 9,400 in a month and up 80,100 in a year.

Business Services: 1.12 million jobs, up 400 in a month and off 11,100 in a year.

Hospitality: 975,700 jobs, up 3,600 in a month and up 13,700 in a year.

Government: 1.05 million jobs, up 6,600 in a month and up 26,400 in a year.

Retail: 730,100 jobs, up 2,600 in a month and off 400 in a year.

Manufacturing: 566,300 jobs, up 2,500 in a month and off 9,300 in a year.

Transportation/Warehousing/Utilities: 457,200 jobs, up 3,000 in a month and up 8,700 in a year.

Construction: 376,400 jobs, up 3,600 in a month and up 1,800 in a year.

Financial Activities: 359,400 jobs, up 1,500 in a month and off 700 in a year.

Wholesale Trade: 352,000 jobs, up 5,300 in a month and up 1,400 in a year.

Information: 222,100 jobs, up 3,800 in a month and off 600 in a year.

And the hiring patterns, by metropolitan area …

Los Angeles County: 4.60 million jobs, up 11,700 in a month and up 60,200 in a year.

Orange County: 1.71 million jobs, up 5,400 in a month and up 23,800 in a year.

Inland Empire: 1.71 million jobs, up 5,700 in a month and up 31,100 in a year.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

Originally Published: July 19, 2024 at 2:48 p.m.

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