The California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) announced it has reached a settlement agreement with the County of Kern, which will result in the dismissal of California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) litigation over the Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) for the Fresno to Bakersfield project section of the high-speed rail program.
On Dec. 16, the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) released a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for early train operator services to assist with the development and management of the initial operations of the high-speed rail system.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) and the California Energy Commission (CEC) announced that they have agreed to a Memorandum of Understanding that focuses attention on how the high-speed rail program can help California meets its climate goals and become a greener state.
On May 18, 2016, the California High-Speed Rail Authority announced amendments to its grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, the first amendment to the grant agreement since 2012. This move comes after the CHSRA recently approved its new 2016 Business Plan—which sets forth the plan to connect the Central Valley and Silicon Valley by 2024.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority released public video of construction of the high-speed rail project throughout the Central Valley on May 13, 2016.
Both the California High-Speed Rail Authority and its federal partner, the Federal Railroad Administration, initiated the environmental review process for the project’s northern section: the 51-mile line between San Francisco and San Jose.
On May 5, 2016, the Caltrain Board of Directors adopted an agreement that invests an additional $211 million in the Caltrain Modernization Program. The seven-party agreement increases funding commitments from Caltrain’s state and local partners, including an additional $113 million commitment from the California High Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA).
The California High-Speed Rail Authority has received 35 Expressions of Interest (EOI) associated with HSR 15-02, the Requests for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for Delivery of an Initial Operating Segment (IOS). Responses include submissions from world-class firms with extensive experience delivering high-speed and other large infrastructure projects. They include a range of private sector firms ranging from financiers/investors, major infrastructure developers and international consortia, rolling stock and systems providers, operators and others.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) has awarded the Spanish company SENER a $56 million contract to develop the engineering and environmental services for the Palmdale to Burbank section of the California High-Speed Line. The environmental documentation for this section is due to be completed by the end of 2017.
