If serious about the goals, they would have followed a straight, shortest route from LA to SF, running frequently, with feeder lines to/from Central Valley and larger coastal cities (Santa Barbara, SLO, Monterey, Salinas, Santa Cruz, etc)

Given where it ended up, mainly because of Congressional shenanigans, it will end up as a little-used, publicly subsidized boondoggle. I’m all for efficient public transit, but this is such a missed opportunity, and a huge waste of taxpayer money. We’ll have mid-range electric airplanes before this thing gets going.

I think the rail will only succeed if funding for it is conditioned on actual delivery of rail services to paying customers, instead of funding it up front like a foyer bathroom remodel with shady contractors and no accountability.

The central valley deserves train stops imo, definitely including Bakersfield. There are a lot of people living there and it’s an area of relative housing affordability, something which greater California could not enable enough.

I know this project as a whole isn’t about Bakersfield, but there will be a station here and the first segment (currently under construction) will go from Bakersfield to Madera.

Are you looking forward to its completion or do you think it’s a waste of money?

I’m looking forward to it but think the choice of location for the Bakersfield station is ridiculous. That area is not the first impression I want visitors to have of Bakersfield.