KTLA

Bullet Train May Take Longer to Build But Cost Less Than Originally Estimated, Official Says

California’s bullet train could take longer to build than previously estimated and its ultimate cost is difficult to predict, the head of the high-speed rail authority told state legislators Wednesday.

A drawing of the proposed bullet train. When completed, the trip from L.A. to San Francisco is estimated to take 2.5 hours. (Credit: California High-Speed Rail Authority/EPA)

“It may take us a little longer than we said to do this,” rail authority Chairman Dan Richard said in testimony to an Assembly transportation committee. He did not elaborate.

But Richard also said that a forthcoming update of its business plan for the high-speed link between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area will show a reduction in the estimated cost of $68 billion, despite delays that have slowed construction.

The project is more than two years behind the schedule the authority announced in 2012, when it expected to start building 29 miles of rail structures. The work began in July and remains at a slow pace.

Click here to read the full story on LATimes.com.

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