California High Speed Rail costs about 1.5x per km than international high speed rail equivalents. But both highways and transit projects in general cost 2-3x more per km than peer countries. There is nothing exceptional about CAHSR's cost issues that merits immediate cancellation.
CAHSR is about 3x over budget, but is it a doomed boondoggle beyond saving? Our costs are higher than other countries, but only about 1.5x. A huge, ambitious project is going to have some sticker shock, and important reforms are in the works to reduce costs moving forward - but Duffy is in the way.

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So what I'm hearing is that HSR cheaper, then
We care about reducing infrastructure costs because we need massive, rapid investment to stop climate change. But high costs, on their own, should never be a reason to abandon needed projects. Consistent political support and funding is part of keeping costs low.
This is a good factoid to remember and constantly reassert, like we need to remember and reassert that frivolous lawsuits and blackmailing lawsuits delayed construction for almost a decade causing CAHSR to miss out on the record low Great Recession-caused costs/prices.
Duffy the MAGA bear keeps acting like a Disney adult because he is Elon’s sad mtv puppet