High-Speed Rail receives a grant for nearly $202M

Alyssa Saldivar
·1 min read

FRESNO, Calif. (KGPE/KSEE) – The California High-Speed Rail Authority received a grant that could change the future of this project, according to an announcement made Monday.

Authorities say they received a nearly $202 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to expand the construction of the high-speed rail by completing a six-grade separation.

The grant issued was made through the Federal 2022 Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program and is the largest award the authority has received since the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, in November 2021.

The grant will fund the design, right-of-way purchased, and construction of the following six-grade separation in the city of Shafter (Kern Couty) that will separate car and pedestrian traffic from current fright trains and future high-speed rail trains:

  • Poplar Avenue

  • Fresno Avenue

  • Shafter Avenue

  • Central Avenue

  • Lerdo Highway

  • Riverside Street

These grade separations are said to be the first to be funded outside of active construction underway along 119 miles in the Central Valley. Officials say it signals a strong federal commitment to advance the nation’s first 220 mph electrified high-speed rail operating segment between Merced, Fresno, and Bakersfield.

Authorities say they have begun advanced work to extend the 119 miles under construction to 171 miles of future electrified high-speed rail from Merced to Bakersfield. Officials add that the high-speed rail project has created more than 11,000 good-paying jobs since the start of construction, 70% of those going to Central Valley residents and there are more than 25 active construction sites.

For more information on the construction and the grant, visit High-Speed Rail Projects.

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