Replica railcar for California’s high-speed rail on display at state fair

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.