en.Wedoany.com Reported - The California High-Speed Rail Authority has approved a joint venture composed of Kiewit, Stacy Witbeck, and Herzog to design and install the railway system on a 191.5-kilometer track in the Central Valley, with the value of the track system contract undisclosed. The authority has also issued a prequalification request for civil works in the direction of Merced and Madera, with a contract value of $2.4 billion. Construction is expected to begin in 2027 and be completed by 2030. Phase 1 of the California high-speed rail network spans 795 kilometers, connecting San Francisco to Los Angeles and Anaheim, with a maximum speed of 354 kilometers per hour. The project has completed 59 major structures, laid 129 kilometers of track, and completed environmental reviews for 745 kilometers of the entire line. The newly awarded track system contract covers the 191.5-kilometer segment in the Central Valley, involving electrification, signaling, communications, and overhead contact line systems. The $2.4 billion civil works procurement for the Merced-Madera segment extends the line northward and integrates with existing regional rail services. The optimized cost for the entire Phase 1 is $126.1 billion, with the Merced-Bakersfield initial operating segment requiring $35.7 billion. The timeline for the entire Phase 1 has not been officially confirmed.

The capital expenditure per kilometer for the California high-speed rail project far exceeds that of comparable European lines. The optimized cost of $126.1 billion for Phase 1 equates to approximately $158.6 million per kilometer. The Warsaw-Łódź high-speed rail line in Poland is 140 kilometers long, with a preliminary contract for one 4-kilometer tunnel valued at €34 million in 2023; the entire approximately 450-kilometer CPK high-speed rail network is estimated at around €8 billion, or €17.8 million per kilometer (Source: Global Construction Review, 2023). The cost difference stems from California's more complex land acquisition litigation, higher labor costs, and seismic design requirements. The Polish line is scheduled to open in 2032, while California has not yet set an official operational date for the Merced-Bakersfield initial segment. Additionally, California is promoting private co-financing through the Momentum Alliance Partners agreement, and Eurostar is expected to increase its contribution to the UK economy from £2 billion to £2.8 billion by 2035 (Source: Eurostar, 2026).