California’s High Speed Rail has been equally lauded or criticized, depending upon who you ask. But the program, now years into its design and more than $680 million into its budget, has yet to produce marked, tangible results. What the state does have is a bevy of reports, consultants, and studies.

If you ask a detractor of the program what’s come since voters approved bonds for the project, they would list complaints from state watch dog groups that include awarding no bid contracts to consultants, making payments without verifying if the work was done or if it was done satisfactorily.

But proponents and those working on the project that the 520 mile high speed rail corridor will revolutionize the way Californians travel, will reduce greenhouse gasses, and will increase inter-city commerce.

From the Sacramento Bee:

California is about to build the largest public-works project in the state’s history: a system of high-speed, electric passenger trains. And even before a spade of dirt is turned, perhaps late next year, the state will have spent about $630 million.

What does California have to show for it?

Thousands of pages of strategies, studies and plans – and a chorus of concern over the California High-Speed Rail Authority’s budget management and its ability to monitor an army of consultants.

Read the full article here.