Flying an airplane over the California High Speed Rail route
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- Опубликовано: 13 сен 2024
- Explore the California High Speed Rail route from above in an airplane to not only see how construction is coming along, but also to observe all of the terrain standing in the way of finishing one of the largest engineering projects in the world. Starting in downtown Los Angeles, we fly 270 miles north along the route through the Mojave desert and Central Valley.
Go to wolficornprint... to order professionally printed, gallery-quality aerial prints from both this flight and other aerial flights.
Music (in order):
C.K. Martin - Galway Clover
ANBR - Thoughts
Tamuz Dekel - Blue Beings
Tamuz Dekel - Ripples
Theatre Of Delays - Resonance
Downtown Binary - Gravity
Ziv Moran - Long Strokes
I feel like this video is super important because a lot of people continually complain about the fact that it's taking you so long, but don't actually realize what's being done. Great work, I hope to see more!
*If you order it from Temu, it will be delivered next week.*
@@MetaView7Temu is trash
Temu products are trash and toxic
Nothing is being done. Making a train between Madera and Bakersfield is idiotic. Anything ending in San Jose/San Francisco or Los Angeles would be infinitely more useful.
@@aluisious corridor between San Jose and San Francisco is already done, ever heard of the Caltrain electrification project?
As daunting as it is to see how much work remains, it is utterly inspiring to see how much has been completed. Those viaducts are BEAUTIFUL!
I’ve been following this project for YEARS and it’s wonderful to finally see a top-to-bottom view! Excellent work!
Glad you liked it
I don't think that even CAHSR has this kind of footage on the project. I wouldn't be surprised if you hear from them to lease your footage for informational and promotional purposes.
They don't
Great work. It's not easy to communicate the scale of a project like this, but you've done it in top-notch fashion. A true public service!
It’s tough to grasp the scale from ground level.
@@Wolficorntv next time you'll have to keep going up to Merced, if you can. That's the north end of the initial Central Valley segment, and where riders will transfer between CAHSR, Amtrak San Joaquins and ACE Rail to reach the Bay Area and Sacramento. CAHSR is competing for additional federal IIJA grants totaling $4.7 billion to finish Merced-Bakersfield by 2030-33.
😊😊😊😊😊
- What an absolutely breathtaking video.
- This was the most complete video I've seen of this project so far. Even the music had me drawn in.
- Really thankful for people like you who take the time to show us all what's going on.
- This gives a good view of the size and scope of this project, and gives a new appreciation for the construction workers who do this.
- I'm hopeful for this project, for California, and for this country that the rest will get on board.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Mexico just opened its interurban Toluca - Mexico City train, it is only about 37 miles long but it took us like 12 years to have it finish because of corruption and mismanagment. I think you can make it faster than we did guys!! Greetins from your southern neighboor country 🤠🌶
Congratulations on your train. But I don't think you understand the level corruption and mismanagement California is capable of.
Small correction, it opened last year. Santa Fe station opened last week, and God-willing Observatorio will open by the end of the year. Also, saying it's only 37mi without mentioning it goes underneath Sierra de las Cruces is a bit odd
That was a cool video. Can't wait to see the northern portions being built.
Hopefully it'll be done quicker. The entire section that'll be used in the Bay Area is complete already, as the High Speed Rail will use Caltrain's current route from Gilroy to 4th and King St, while extending into the city to the Salesforce Transit Center.
I have a lot of optimism and faith in this large undertaking. People may doubt it now, but when it's finished, it'll send a message to the rest of America that high speed rail is possible.
Mouth breathers like you os why California is broke and people are struggling in California. Nobody in the central valley supports the crazy train that has now cots 3x the original price and not a single mile of track has been laid
@@noremfor bullshit
1) Where is Caltrain going to run if HSR is on their tracks?
2) THERE ARE ROAD CROSSINGS ON CALTRAIN TRACKS
YOU CANNOT RUN A FUCKING HIGH SPEED TRAIN ACROSS A ROAD
@@aluisious you CAN run a high speed train across a road. KTX in South Korea do that all the time. You know what, travel more.
@@aluisious you seriously need to do some research
I've taken High Speed Rail in France, Spain, Germany and China. California, you don't understand how important it is to finish this project ASAP. It will fundamentally change California for the better
Agree!
I really hope that once CALHSR is up and running, it will cause a boom in construction with other parts of the country going "Well hey *I* want that too"
Wow ... What stunning scenery! Hope this mega project eventually gets finished!!
Me too!
It won't, it a money laundering scheme
Simply fantastic. This beats the drone footage hands down when it comes to getting the overall scope and perspective of this seminal public transit infrastructure project.
Your video best captures the immensity of this endeavor. Truly breathtaking. It must have been similar to seeing the Golden Gate Bridge being built.
This video fills in a gap not available on other YT sites that cover the CAHSR. Thank you so much for this! New sub.
Glad you liked it!
You should look up NHSRCL's month end videos to see what the drones can do.
Drone footage is good for individual structures. This simply goes at like 10x the altitude and 300x the range a drone is allowed to fly at for the grand scope. Far closer to the Great Wall of China than just the Golden Gate Bridge.
Your video and your support for the High Speed Rail Project has lifted my spirits. I am one of thousands of people who work on the High Speed Rail (HSR) Project. I see the HSR project as a way to address the California housing crisis. Imagine living near any of the HSR stations in a more affordable home in the Central Valley and being able to travel quickly to other hubs where employment opportunities and salaries may be greater.
Viewers of your video may not know that thousands of acres of land with a high ecosystem habitat value have been purchased for restoration and conservation to offset impacts to endangered species and habitats encountered along the route. This is the role I am playing as Mitigation and Conservation Planning Manager for HSR Authority. Impacts to farmland and urban areas are also being tracked for similar mitigation purposes. Any future residential and commercial development will also require mitigation offsets by developers. This means that the most valuable ecosystems are enhanced and preserved while the lower ecological value properties can be used to support the population needs of California.
Thank you for all your work on this project. There’s obviously a lot of work going on behind the scenes that many will never know about!
To compare, in 2008 China had almost ZERO high speed lines. Nowadays ALL major and many minor cities all over the country are connected via high speed rail. Even an extremely difficult to build line to Tibet has been finished. In the SAME timeframe the USA is still struggling to build ONE (NOT extremely difficult) relatively SHORT line (it's not stretching the country). That shows how far the USA has been lagging behind with China/Europe/Japan.
The problem is rich people always fight against it because they don’t want to pay additional taxes and probably won’t use it. Then you have the landowners who fight in court against it going through their land, same as regular trains fighting for right of way back in the day.
let’s uh get some *checks notes* authoritarian single-party rule *hmm* in here to build HSR faster?
@@arjunyg4655 So according to you all of Europe, Japan and even a poor developing country like Indonesia are having an authoritarian government? ALL of these countries already have High speed rail for decades while the USA is still struggling TRYING to build ONE.
@@johnsamuNo lmao. But they have spent the better part of a century building out their passenger rail networks, instead of progressively optimizing them for freight-only. I was really looking at comparing China to the USA specifically since 2008. You’ll also note that Japan has been working on the Chūō Shinkansen since about 2007 (when funding began being planned), about the same as CAHSR. And the Chūō Shinkansen is expected to open later than CAHSR still (2034)! CAHSR is not doing amazingly well, but it isn’t unbelievably slow either for a 21st century project in a democratic society. HS2 is another comparison point. Outside China, things have moved a lot slower for many decades.
also doesnt help that anytime anything public transit is even floated, millions of car brains go HOMLESS BAD
Thanks for the update on the project its actually really appreciated for those of us trying to keep an eye on the progress
Next level video. Good to see you again.
I would love to be able to hop on a train and go from Sacramento to LA. It would be so much better than flying.
Can't wait to ride it!
You'll be waiting a long time
Very interesting. Thank you for taking us along for the flight.
Glad you enjoyed it
What awesome video and I can't wait for this high speed rail come to a reality!
I like to see that the us government is finally investing in Highspeed trains, hopefully this project will be completed soon👍
Nice video, this is super descriptive and very informative. This is even better than the "updates" the California High Speed Rail Authority themselves put out. Well done 👏
Glad it was helpful!
An excellent, informative presentation!
Glad you liked it!
Now we have Lucid Stew's CHSR road trip visualized with ariel view!
Wow is what I can say! Very nice music to accompany the flight, not too much chatter but enough to make the journey worthwhile and understandable! And YES I am also itching to ride this train one day! I hope that this will happen soon! And I think CA should hire a Japanese company to make this project happen! Japanese and high speed rail and high speed rail and Japan are one of the same! They know how to make it happen! Thanks for the flight, now I want to go and watch that plane “parking lot” video!
Glad you liked it! And now I know who to reach out to for chess instruction :)
Amazing work, also very calming to watch
I always want California High-Speed Rail in California and I always love California High-Speed Rail in California.😮
Transit and planes, sign me UP!
Thanks Wolfie!
thx Juan!
Bro what a concept - love this, immediate sub!
in the future this will be a mesmerizing video
A trip along the original Los Angeles Aqueduct would be pretty cool.
Love your videos, man. The clarity of the images is incredible! This is one of my favorites, along with the VCV video you did during the pandemic.
Thx Bruno. Maybe the stars align and we can do a Grumman collab one of these days.
Go Cal go. You need modern infrastructure. When your country soon is liberated from control of 'flow of exchange', then you regain the strength you were famous for. Greets from Germany.
I sincerely believe the segment from Bakersfield to LA must be completed next. There is only a bus connection from Bakersfield to LA now!! AFTER connecting to LA, the CAHSR could use existing rail connection to SFO or any convenient BART Station until CAHSR construction catches up.
My understanding, unfortunately, is that the Central Valley to SF section will be the next section. I'm not entirely sure what weighed into that decision but the logical guess is because it will cost less to get that section up and running.
The unfortunate reality of this project is that it can only be built bit by bit as the money trickles in b/c there simply isn't enough financial support to fully commit. The end result of this approach is the costs rise the longer this gets stretched out.
15:07 that bridge over the SJQ river has been under construction for years and I pretty much grew up watching it rise from the ground. I hope one day to ride the train.
it wrapped up construction a few years ago. Now it's just a matter of connecting it to the guideway at ground level.
It's worth noting that initial $33 billion price tag was a very early estimate done before the full scope of the project was known. When voters approved Prop 1A in 2008 to greenlight the project, the estimated price tag was at about $45 billion.
CAHSR currently has $28.7 billion in approved funding, of which about $13 billion has been spent. They have enough funding in hand and identified to complete Merced to Bakersfield by 2030-2033 and begin revenue service with up to six high speed trainsets.
Their next goal is to reach SF via the now electrified Caltrain corridor, which they helped fund, and then head south to LA. When construction on those happens is dependent on funding. The final segment of the entire SF-LA route was recently environmentally cleared, a crucial step toward starting construction.
In the meantime, people will be able to connect with HSR in Merced and Bakersfield via other rail and bus transit to/from the Bay Area, Sacramento and SoCal.
The Pacheco pass tunneling will truly be an insane feat of engineering. It will be expensive, but it links all of Bakersfield and Fresno and various towns along the corridor to Silicon Valley and SF. And the economic benefit from that alone will justify all the costs. The benefit for future generations who will ride the trains will be worth it alone too.
@@f-86zoomer37 no more insane than the Channel Tunnel or St Gotthard Tunnel. For the US it’ll by far be the longest rail tunnel at 13.5 miles, and through a seismically-active area, but then Japan and Taiwan build rail tunnels through seismically active areas too with no issues. CAHSR will have experts on hand for building this, just as they have all along.
Well said.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fc it would be one of the largest challenges for the US. We haven’t had to build a rail tunnel that can support electric trains going at 150+ mph
@@f-86zoomer37 and I don’t think really beyond 100 mph. There are a few tunnels on the NEC, but I’m pretty sure most if not all of those lead into stations, so trains are slowing down anyway, or have too tight of a radius for higher speeds. Those tunnels were first built in the late 1800s/early 1900s, and it’s only recently that they’re finally getting modern upgrades/replacements.
Pacheco Pass will not only be the longest US rail tunnel, but also as you said the first for true high speed rail in the US, designed for speeds of over 200 mph. That said, other countries have successfully built many high speed rail tunnels, and it is some of that expertise that’ll be applied to building ours here.
Stunning footage! Side note… that Bakersfield Station location looks quite unfortunate.
Yeah...the same could probably be said about several of the locations. That said, I'd imagine business would eventually flourish near the stations.
@@WolficorntvIndeed. The station locations were greatly affected by local city input. It's obvious what cities wanted them and which ones didn't. Fresno did well by welcoming the CAHSR.
Yeah, if they had just put it slightly to the east in the urban grid portion that’s already along the alignment anyways, it would’ve given them much more useable space for urban growth around the station and still been about the same distance from the existing downtown. Kind of a shame that even with high speed rail project we’re still catering to car-oriented development patterns
I purchased rentals along the light rail route in Sacramento. Housing and businesses will find a way to be close by. It takes a while. Even when the locals fight you on it. It is great way to build an economy. These cities will benefit from it as well.
@@mrxman581 I and I'm sure many others are so glad that not only is the historic SP depot going to be preserved, but also incorporated into the future HSR station. Construction on that station is funded and should begin in full force in I think 2026.
You took off from Whiteman. As someone who grew up in Pacoima, it made me really happy. How I miss my old neighborhood. Also, kudos on how you did a great job of keeping it neutral. When it was announced I thought it a great idea (for the time until completion and cost), but I worried about corruption. Turns out, my worries were absolutely valid, I wish that the project was never started.
CAHSR is a case of capitalist capture not necessarily corruption. You may know more than me. But the bigger problem is that High Speed Rail was a 10 person planning/ think-tank group that ballooned into an $8 Billion dollar agency over night. The big engineering firms capable of doing this work convinced them to put all that money into beginning design work and not putting nearly enough into public outreach and engagement. Engineers aren't great at understanding that you have to talk to human beings before you can show them drawings of lines on maps. And that created space for opposing forces to work the locals up agains the project.
Great video! Looking forward to seeing it completed.
You and me both!
Yes and yeah of course California High-Speed Rail in California.😮
Really like the arial view of the project! Everyone who has ever used high-speed rail is likely to agree we finally need something like it in the US! The Shinkansen in Japan is legendary anyway, and unbeatable in terms of performance and reliability. But the French TGV, the German ICE, Spanish high-speed rail, the Chunnel train, and the high-speed rail system in China serve as other striking examples of how travel in the up-to-500-mile range can be soooo much more efficient and convenient than flying.
On a business trip in Japan a few months ago, I walked up to the ticket counter and was given the options of a Nozomi Shinkansen train (the fastest kind) either 12, 24 or 38 minutes later. Not knowing how long it was going to take me to get to the platform, I picked the 38-minute option. I would have easily made the train leaving 12 minutes later. With time to spare...
love this
Great video, it's the first time I listen about this pambicious project
California is leading the way into the future with high speed rail from LA to San Francisco and the LA area to Las Vegas. Let's go America! ❤❤🤍🤍💙💙
Lol
yes 200 billion train so the homeless can Tavel back and forth
@@cardboardboxificationcan’t u just appreciate positives?
@@waxerprizm774no cause democrats keep ruining this country san francisco is ruined already.
There are no positive. Waist of billions.
Amazing video 🎉 well done good sir. I’ve always wanted to see downtown LA going to antelope valley if someone flew over the San Gabriel mountain range.
Thx!
I'm not too sure anyone born before 1980 will be alive to ride this when it is fully completed
While I disagree, the reality is this is an investment in our future not our present.
Such a well made video!
Thank you!
Fantastic video!
Thank you very much!
Just a correction: the initial operation segment (IOS) is between Bakersfield and Merced, not Madera
Looking forward to a day when riding this train is possible. Thanks for the aerial adventure and perspective!
@@thomas6502 earliest date that CAHSR is aiming for is 2030, and as far out as 2033. Any timeline beyond that for reaching SF and LA comes down to funding, just as it always has.
Love this
Sick video and music bro
You flew right over my house, should I be scared? Lol
Don't worry...I wasn't dropping water balloons
this is amazing, id love to see brigbtline west
I want to see CA HSR completed but am actually more excited about the Brightline West HSR btwn LA and Vegas. There is hope it will be completed by the Olympics in 2028. That will be a game changer as so many Americans have never traveled outside of N America - or even the country - and experienced high speed rail. Experiencing how fast and smooth it is will create many converts.
I can see certainly see Brightline opening the eye for many about rail benefits but in reality it won't be a very good representation of HSR capability due to it's many shortcomings. That said...better than nothing.
@@Wolficorntv Beyond the stations not being ideally located, what shortcomings are there?
@@mikesallaberry3718 it's not truly high speed (up to 180mph), it's primarily single track plus it the most obvious stations shortcomings. That said...better than nothing.
@@Wolficorntv From everything I've read, it will be traveling over 180 mph. Maybe you're thinking of Brightline East, which is diesel and slower than HSR. Single vs double track doesn't really define HSR, from what I know - it's the speed. Vegas to SoCal is a relatively short line so with proper planning and scheduling, having a single track in some sections can work fine. What's interesting to me is how the Vegas-LA line would be highly improved by the southern section of Phase 2, which would add a line btwn LA Union Station and San Diego, passing through Rancho Cucamonga where the Brightline West line starts. I think that phase should be accelerated as then you'd have HSR btwn LA, San Diego, and Vegas.
@@Wolficorntv Just watched this well done simulation and discussion of Brightline West, based on official EIR documents. ruclips.net/video/hXF_g_aq8vc/видео.html
Very cool! I think few people understand the massive scope of this project, but seeing like this, more will.
@Wolficorn Great video, fantastic footage - appreciate the effort! Hopefully you can follow this up with another flyover, like September of next year, 2025?
Thx! Yes…I think an update/comparison video in the future would be cool to do.
That was wonderful! Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Awesome!
This is an incredible video
Thank you so much for doing this
Screw the nimbys
CaHSR IS MAKING MASSIVE PROGRESS!
California lookinh beatiful, and hopefully that beauty can be seen from the train too soon™
Indeed. I've lived my whole 65 years in California and have never really seen the Central Valley. It's been mostly flyover territory. It will be wonderful to enjoy the scenery from the comfort of a HSR train and stopping at the various cities to explore.
@@mrxman581 it's a lot like California's Midwest. Seemingly just 'flyover country' but when you take the chance to stop and explore, you realize that there's a lot more to it, and that it isn't just 'nowhere'.
I spent four years at college in Merced, and found that the Central Valley certainly has its own charm, that there's much to appreciate and enjoy.
Even from over in Europe, I’m very exited about the project. While it has countless of issues. Some are just the lack of commitment to fund the entire line not just the Initial operating segment. Some are pure political.
But what I fear the most, is when the initial operating segment opens and there isn’t any or very little progress on connecting it either to Los Angeles or San Francisco, that this will just fuel the critics and kill the rest of the project.
Then you got a white elephant, a train to and from nowhere.
But let’s say, the tunnel from Burbank to Palmdale has been dug to a significant extend, or the line between Bakersfield and Palmdale is under significant construction. Same for the section between Madera and Gilroy having significant progress. It makes killing the project significantly more difficult to justify, because you could argue. Yes right. Ow ridership is poor, but the connection to the Metro centers is opening in 2 to 3 years.
CHSR must start construction to get to SF or LA before 2030, so that you can say. Service to SF or LA by 2033
Perfect video,
It's a pleasure to see how this project is going. Greetings from Switzerland
It's incredible that people really believe in this project. Cool video tho!
THIS IS SUCH A GOOD IDEA, thank you so much for making this video!!!!!!
Glad you liked it!!
My hope is that all the skill gained from working on this project could be used to help lower the cost of similar projects, which would really be beneficial for Texas's high speed rail project and future ones being proposed
Agree completely.
Thank you for your public service
It's the most important infrastructure project in America to date, I just wish it was better managed or planned. I am still 100% for it and any other attempt at getting American's out of their cars and onto trains once again... And clearly if it's working well in Florida it can work well anywhere in the USA!
Agreed!
Florida doesn't have a HSR train. Stop conflating conventional passenger train service with HSR. IT'S NOT THE SAME THING!!!
Being the first HSR train to be built in the USA is going to come with growing pains. CAHSR has learn from their initial missteps and has been on a role the last 4-5 years. They've righted the ship for the most part. But to be fair, they also had to deal with a tremendous amount of obstacles from conservatives and countless lawsuits.
@@mrxman581 and even some in the party that generally supports HSR and transit. It was two state Democrats in SoCal who tried to hold up the remainder of Prop 1A funding. It's why when elections roll around, vote for those who support funding transit, including HSR.
I love Whiteman, got my IFR there at Vista, smooth ride Bro!
Nice!!
Fun Fact: a Cessna 172 has an top operating speed of around 300 km/h. The train will routinely go faster than this at 350.
When the TGV established the railway speed record at just over 570 km/h (that's not a typo), they had to use a private jet to follow it.
The only time a 172 could be that fast would be in a straight down dive or 80 km/h tail wind but point taken :)
@@Wolficorntv hahahaha I’m a lot more practical with trains than planes (although they’re a not too distant second)! Amazing video BTW, I really like how you showed the structure of the curves on the right of way.
@@Blaze6108glad you liked it!!
I just noticed how Fresno's station is right next to their Chinatown! I wonder if that'll give it more business and traction! Their Central Fish Co. is great
Great video, following this project form across the seas and oceans
Fun fact: you should have gone by the nickname Hawkeye, because you look and sound just like Alan Alda :)
haha
Would have been cool an overly of the route superimposed on the ground!
Nice work would be nice if you can add see thu roads with some what detail just to understand the geography of the freeways and major roads as your flying by but it’s still amazing work
Great video. Like your airplane. Is it a Tiger?
Yes, it is!
This is so freaking cool. You should definitely make this into an annual series if possible. No other video has conveyed the insane scale of this project as well as this one.
The Japanese built their Shinkansen bullet train in 1964. I rode it in 1966. This could have been started 60 years ago, if anybody had some forethought. We definitely talked about it in school in 1970. So many of the man-made obstacles that this project has had to accommodate have been built since then. The geographic obstacles have existed since before human beings, we accommodated them for the California Water Project and Interstate highways. How many fewer expensive flyover viaducts would be required had we jumped into action even 50 years ago, maybe at the beginning of forward thinking Jerry Brown's first administration?
Yeah the time to act I just mentioned was the disaster California exported to the nation; the administration of Ronald Reagan.
@@torunit4620 yeah ...repubs governors like Reagan, Deukmajian, Wilson and Schwarzenegger...lack of infrastructure under these dopes is criminal...
Nice video, and what is the music? Love it!
I added the music info in the video description.
Awesome video! When did you fly?
This was filmed August 14
@@WolficorntvThat's my birthday. That's for the bday gift.😄
I'm thanking my great grandkids for this.
Seeing this project's impressive progress really does bring out the cope from some people.
Cool video
Stunning video!
Having said that, I wish that you had added an overly to show the intended route where the actual imagery doesn't show it clearly. Just a nitpick, admittedly.
You just have to use your imagination for those parts
thank you so much. something chsra should do every year to get more people on board. the indians do it every month
Great video! BTW 51 miles of the route is now open with the electrification into SF with Caltrain, right?
Bryan, another masterful job! You have a great touch, including stunning aerial footage and calm, objective narration. Thanks for filming and posting. I share your optimism for the project. Wayne (DA40 KSBA)
Techy BTW question: is the video available in 4K? (maybe still being processed by RUclips?)
Thx Wayne. I finished this video in HD. Just make sure quality settings are set to HD...sometimes YT likes to auto set it lower than that.
Bryan, yes it plays top end at 1080p(HD) but I'm wondering if your camera didn't capture in something more like 2160p(4K).
@@GeezerGeekPilot I captured everything at 4K I just didn't edit in 4K. The crap YT compression doesn't help.
@@WolficorntvI wish it were at 60 fps.
@@TinLeadHammer I filmed the entire route with 3 cameras. One hyperlapse, angle similar to hyperlapse at 30fps, "google earth view" at 60fps. Edit is at 24 fps so everything except hyperlapse in varying degrees of slomo. For THIS video, I obviously relied mainly on the hyperlapse cam.
Awesome.. Thank you!
I have driven the route up to Hanford.. It is a huge project.
I would bet they just tie in with metro link in Palmdale if it even makes it south of Bakersfield. The underground section is going to be a hard sell when there is already rail service from Union Station to Palmdale.
@@seldomseenslim7887 I very much doubt SoCal will be cool letting HSR end in Bakersfield, and will push to at least get it to Palmdale ASAP, whether that’s after HSR reaches SF, as is CAHSR’s next goal once Merced-Bakersfield is done, or ideally there’ll be enough available funding to go to San Jose/SF and Palmdale simultaneously.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fc Without a nonstop commute from LA To at least San Jose or the Bay area nobody will ride and it will soon bankrupt..
Southern Cal is not big on mass transit and the powers that be, don't spend tax dollars here like up north..
The coming rescission will likely downsize this project to death!
I believe Brightline to Vegas will workout great.
@@seldomseenslim7887 apart from all the riders in the Central Valley (a population of over six million people and growing, 2/3rds of whom live between Merced and Bakersfield) that’ll travel to the Bay Area for work and recreation. Plus getting HSR to at least Palmdale and the Metrolink connection to LA closes the SoCal-CV passenger rail gap and would create the all-rail LA-SF journey. The travel time between LA and Bakersfield would be marginally faster than the current nonstop bus ride (2 1/2 hours bus vs 2 hours Metrolink + 23-25 minutes HSR + time to transfer at Palmdale), but would potentially offer more capacity and a more pleasant ride experience than a thruway bus.
@@seldomseenslim7887 apart from all the riders in the Central Valley (a population of over six million people and growing, 2/3rds of whom live between Merced and Bakersfield) that’ll travel to the Bay Area for work and recreation. Plus getting HSR to at least Palmdale and the Metrolink connection to LA closes the SoCal-CV passenger rail gap and would create the all-rail LA-SF journey. The travel time between LA and Bakersfield would be marginally faster than the current nonstop bus ride, but would offer more capacity and a more pleasant travel experience than a thruway bus that’s also less prone to bad weather.
@@seldomseenslim7887 As for Brightline West, it’s traveling from a station three miles south of the Strip to one 40 miles east of LA, at an average of a little over 100 mph (218 miles in about two hours) on a mostly single track mainline in the middle of a freeway, with two intermediate stops in very inconvenient locations, especially Victor Valley. It’ll have both a lower top speed and average speed than CAHSR, with lower capacity, plus it’s being built for a very different purpose.
While CAHSR is being built to link up the six (and eventually 8) largest cities, and 3 mega-regions, in the state, BLW is being primarily built to shuttle Southern Californians to and from Vegas for the weekend, offering a much needed alternative to driving I-15, and one talked about since the late 1990s. It won’t be competitive with flying between LA and Vegas, and really only competitive with driving depending on where you start from, while CAHSR will outcompete driving and be very competitive with flying for LA-SF and the cities in between like San Jose, Merced, Fresno, Bakersfield, and even Palmdale.
I fly (flew?) out of KWHP. I really need to get back to doing it and get that 2 year review done. Thanks for the video.
You should!
It is in fact being built.
Really beautiful video, but one thing caught my eye. I think your outside camera was recording at 30fps while the video was edited in 24fps causing the video to skip frames in a somewhat distracting way.
Glad you liked it and thanks for the feedback. The video plays back at 24fps and yes, the interior cameras were recorded at 24. There were 3 exterior cameras. One hyperlapse video (1 frame every 15 seconds), a matching angle camera for the slowed down shots (30fps converted to 24fps) and the belly cam (60fps converted to 24fps). The hyperlapse footage can feel a little steppy at that angle when that low to the ground. I added in some motion blur to help alleviate but it's not perfect. I've noticed the stepiness goes away at higher altitudes when the ground is moving slower in the frame.
Thanks for creating and posting this video. The tunnel between Burbank and Palmdale will be a heck of a construction project as well as section through Tehachapi area.
PS - You have to wonder about the final completion date or will it make it past Bakersfield?
Yes that section will be a beast. I think it will all eventually come together. WHEN will be determined by federal support (ie...who's in power). US does many things good...consensus isn't one of them.
What camera are you using for the belly cam? Love your videos!
Thx. GP12’s
Awesome video thsnks
Glad you enjoyed it
The California High-Speed Rail Authority was created in 1996 to develop a high speed rail system to connect major metropolitan areas of California with service between northern and southern California. Prop 1A passed in 2008 and sold a $10 billion 30-year bond to construct the rail line core segments from San Francisco to Los Angeles area and on local railroad interconnect systems. Its now 16 years later the cost estimate for just an initial 171-mile segment in the central valley (Merced to Bakersfield) now exceeds the $33 billion estimate for the entire 500-mile system, is estimated to be operational by 2033, and exceeds currently secured funding by $10 billion. There is no estimate of when the entire system will be operational BUT the full system cost is now estimated at up to $128 billion ($95 billion more than originally estimated) - not including segments to Palmdale and Anaheim - leaving more than a $100 billion funding gap. Much of the previous cost overrun is due to more than 1,000 change orders approved by the rail authority or by contractors, such as not realizing the need for massive barriers to prevent freight trains on nearby tracks derailing and crashing into a bullet train. Even though the rail authority had 12 years to study the problem it was never thought through before being presented to the voting public. If Prop 1A tried to sell the true cost in the form of a $150 billion 30-year bond to build the entire system in no less than 30 years it would never have been passed. This is government mismanagement on steroids.
to be fair: those barriers are a uniquely US thing - and they actually show the decrepit state of US rail infrastructure, when massive derailments are considered to be a regular problem.
@@stephanweinberger the high-speed rail authority had 12 years to prepare the plan before presenting it to the voters for approval and the fact they missed this major issue is one of the many reasons why this project is so over budget instead of $10 billion now it’s “estimated” to be $150 billion - I never would have voted for this if I knew the true cost
@@ragtowne That said, a couple walls surely aren't the _main_ problem here.
I still maintain, that the primary reasons for the budget overruns are a) the deliberate blockades by various interest groups, drawing out planning and construction and thereby driving up cost, and b) lack of experience with HSR, exacerbated by 'not invented here' syndrome that prevents just using foreign expertise.
But even considering all that it's still mindboggling from an European perspective. Even in Germany (which isn't exactly known for cheap labour and swift bureaucracy) such a project would only cost about 1/5th to 1/3rd. And the Spanish manage to build for about half that!
E.g. the latest HSR section in Germany (Wendlingen to Ulm) cost about 4 billion for 60km (i.e. ~65 million/km), whereas CaliHSR phase 1 is now projected to cost ~135 million/km - but keep in mind that the German line is literally 50% in tunnels, whereas phase 1 is ~90% on simple flat land in the central valley.
Great video! Looks like they're practically done with the Central Valley section. Hopefully, we can approve the rest of the funding that they never got. If $11 billion gets us this much HSR right of way built then I want us to fund the rest asap and get it built!
it's closer to $13 billion total spent by this point, but your point still stands. Part of that has also gone toward the environmental clearances, bookend projects like Caltrain electrifying, and of course legal challenges. Now that those three are just about done, future funding should be mostly going toward construction, and now that CHSRA has worked out the kinks in that process, things should go smoother going forward, starting with the Bakersfield and Merced extensions.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fcof course the allocated budget should go up.
@@pieter-bashoogsteen2283 they have up to $28.7 billion authorized, out of which that $12-13 billion has been spent, but need $5-7 billion more to complete Merced to Bakersfield.
They’re competing for up to $4.7 billion in future IIJA grants that should hopefully be awarded in the next year or two. The remaining funding gap will be filled by state C&T funds. Those last through 2030 if not extended.
Any hope of reaching SF or LA anytime in the not too distant future will rely on a huge increase in federal funding, which ideally would be a stable annual funding source.
@@ChrisJones-gx7fc And I think they should substantially increase yearly funding and avoid dragging out construction and accrue further cost overruns. None of this is the fault of CHSR itself of course, but of the state and feds not doing enough and NIMBY’s and public figures (like Elon Musk) purposefully trying to block progress.
I believe that while a lot of people might balk at CHSR receiving more yearly funding, once they see progress speeding up, a lot of criticism might dissipate. I also believe that CSHR isn’t doing nearly enough to properly communicate the progress they have already made and keep making (and the challenges they’ve had to overcome).
And although they will be working on CSHR for more than a decade to come, I believe that they need to come with viable longterm plans to keep building even after CSHR is completed. They can’t stop building after CSHR. It is encouraging that HDC will be built and Brightline West, but Brightline West is going to need double-tracked eventually. I do think that the complete lack of a very longterm roadmap and vision is disappointing. If CSHR is going to effectively be the start of a revolution in American transportation, it needs to communicate a vision that tells the public what it thinks the future should be. This could put pressure on state governments to do more than what they are currently doing and get their act together. This won’t work for Texas though, since that state is run by a bunch of reactionaries, led by Gregg Abbot, who do anything to stop transit from developing.
Additionally they should propose a more concrete CSHR phase 3 and possible connections to Phoenix with a station in Mesa. It would be nice if CSHR would be able to liaison with other American high speed rail projects like Cascadia rail and provide expertise, training, legal support, work crews and construction equipment.
At least that’s what I think. I really hope that they get to finish this project and I one day get to ride in it.
I will have grandkids by the time c.h.s.r is completed. So in the grand scheme of things,
Progress is at a normal pace.
Great video, except you got one thing wrong. The future Brightline route does not go anywhere near Palmdale. Instead the western terminal is in Rancho Cucamonga - 70 miles to the southeast from Palmdale.
Incorrect. There is a high desert corridor track planned to connect Palmdale to Victorville.
Great video! Thank you!
At 9:59 looks like the train is already up and running? Also what day/time did you make the flight? Stunning weather!
That’s another train track…one of the reasons for some of the viaducts is so that the future train can circumvent the current tracks. This was filmed in August late in the morning.
It seems that us Kings/Tulare residents will be the rail's guinea pigs! Jokes aside I'm excited to see what comes from using the rail in the future, I'll be using it for concerts non-stop and visiting family yay!
Once it's finished all the complaining will stop
What will be interesting is all the development that can happen along all that empty land with a blank slate, and it will all be high speed rail based development. It might be a weird little island of density haha