Newsom: Track Laying to Begin in California’s High-Speed Rail Project

The governor made the announcement after a major facility was completed and the state dropped a lawsuit challenging a $4 billion federal grant cancellation.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks alongside construction workers and local officials in Kern County to mark completion of the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s Southern Railhead Facility, a logistics hub for upcoming track installation, on Feb. 3, 2026. Photo courtesy of the Governor’s Office

Gov. Gavin Newsom said California is entering the track-installation phase of its high-speed rail project after the state completed a staging facility in Kern County.

In a Feb. 3 announcement, Newsom, a Democrat, said the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) completed the Southern Railhead Facility, a 150-acre site near Wasco—around 25 miles northwest of Bakersfield. The site will operate as a central logistics hub for the delivery, storage, and deployment of materials to electrify and operate the system.