Trump Says Federal Government Won’t Fund California’s High-Speed Rail Project

The president says the delayed and expensive project is ‘out of control.’

The Cedar Viaduct, part of California's High-Speed Rail project through the Central Valley in Fresno, on Aug. 26, 2021. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

President Donald Trump said the federal government will not continue to pay for California’s high-speed rail, calling the costly and delayed project “out of control” during a meeting with Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney on May 6.

The president said he told Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy about his decision.

“That train is the worst cost overrun I’ve ever seen,” Trump told reporters Tuesday. “It’s totally out of control. It’s a stupid project that should have never been built.

“I told our new secretary of transportation we’re not going to pay for that thing,” he added.

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said ending the project now would be wasteful, Villaseńor said.

“With 50 major structures built, walking away now as we enter the track-laying phase would be reckless—wasting billions already invested and letting job killers cede a generational infrastructure advantage to China,” spokesman Daniel Villaseñor told The Epoch Times in an email.

Construction is expected to start this year on a 171-mile section of the Central California route from Merced to Bakersfield. This stretch was expected to cost $35.3 billion, according to a legislative analysis.

But funding came up short again this year. The High Speed Rail Authority asked lawmakers to provide another $7 billion by June 2026 to begin the first stretch.

In February, Trump announced his administration planned to investigate the project, which was authorized by California voters in 2008.

Since its inception, the project has been delayed, and costs have soared from early estimates of $33 billion to $128 billion.

Crews build the Hanford Viaduct over Highway 198 as part of the California High Speed Rail project in Hanford, Calif., on Feb. 12, 2025. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

No tracks have been laid, but officials hope passengers can begin riding by 2030.

At an event in January, Newsom said his administration remained committed to the project in response to criticisms.

“To the cynics that are filled with cynicism that stand on the sidelines and don’t engage, we’re here making this work,” Newsom said. “Finally, we’re at the point where we’re going to start laying down this track in the next couple years.”

The state envisioned the railway to span 463 miles and run from San Francisco to Los Angeles.

According to Jamey Matalka, the authority’s chief financial officer, about $13.8 billion has been spent on the project so far, of which about 23 percent was federal funding.

The prior Trump administration terminated a federal agreement in 2019 to provide nearly $1 billion for the project, saying the authority had failed to make reasonable progress.

In 2021, the Biden administration reversed the decision and increased the funding to over $3 billion.

Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks in Los Angeles on Sept. 25, 2024. Newsom's spokesman said shutting down the state's high-speed rail project would be wasteful. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

California state Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones criticized the rail project in February.

“Californians cannot afford to continue building this train to nowhere. Defund the high speed rail!” Jones posted on social media Feb. 3.

According to an Emerson College poll published in February, a majority—54 percent—of Californians think the project is a good use of state funds, while 46 percent think it is a bad use of money.

The poll included California’s registered voters and was conducted Feb. 10 and 11. Emerson College is in Boston.