Taxpayers Face Risk If High-Speed Rail Ridership Falls Short
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Taxpayers could be on the hook for more than $1 billion in annual operating costs if the ridership estimates for California's proposed high-speed rail project don't pan out.
The new business plan for building the $98 billion system projects that between 23 million and 34 million passengers will use it by the time bullet trains traverse the state in 2035.
Yet predicting ridership is a complicated business that relies on unknowns such as future gas prices, airline taxes and population growth.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority says the system would make money even under the lowest ridership scenarios.
Critics such as Democratic state Sen. Alan Lowenthal of Long Beach question whether the system can make money if it starts as planned in the sparsely populated Central Valley.
(Copyright 2011 The Associated Press)
