High-Speed Rail Board Meeting Recap: New Chair, New Construction Team, New Timeline, New Business Plan
Yesterday, the California High-Speed Rail Authority Board of Directors met with a full agenda. When the meeting was over, the Board had appointed a new chair, approved the staff recommendation for a team to oversee track construction, and formally approved the business plan that calls for tracks to be laid “later this year.”
Business Plan
The biggest news from the meeting was that the Board formally approved its new Business Plan. The plan earned headlines when it was first released for finally outlining a serious plan to begin construction beyond the Central Valley “spine” of the project. Along with the governor and legislature’s pledge to allocate $1 billion in funds annually from the cap-and-trade program for two decades, the plan created new optimism that the project might one day be completed.
However, in the spring, a 60 Minutes piece questioning the project and a coordinated effort to cast aspersions on the project by mis-interpreting the plan changed the narrative around the project. Even as the authority was preparing for this meeting, State Senator Steve Strickland (R-OC) released a statement that “It’s time to rip the Band-Aid off on the high-speed fail.”
As for what the plan actually proposes: the first step is to begin and complete laying of the rail tracks of the 120 mile “Central Valley Spine” of the project then use a mix of public and private investment to link those tracks to the electrified Caltrain tracks that were completed a couple of years ago to provide service between the Central Valley and the Bay Area. After that, the authority could move on construction to connect to Southern California.
Importantly, the Business Plan calls for track laying to begin this year, that is for the authority to actually begin laying tracks and not just complete the freeway and other projects that are needed for the rail project’s completion. The laying of track will be a symbolic victory for supporters of high-speed rail, as detractors often argue the project is a failure because track has not been laid despite all of the projects that have been completed.
The Construction Team and the Rest of 2026
The board also announced the members of the construction team that will be laying the Central Valley track and promised construction will begin this year, although it stopped short of declaring a start date.
An American-led consortium of Kiewit, Stacey Witbeck, and Herzog to install the electrified track, overhead power system, train-control technology, and communications infrastructure for the state’s high-speed rail line, marking the project’s transition from large-scale civil construction to railway installation. The contract covers the 119-mile Central Valley segment between Merced and Bakersfield, where major structures and guideway construction are already underway. The Authority says track installation is expected to begin later this year, following completion of the Southern Railhead facility in Kern County, which will serve as the staging hub for rail materials and equipment.
The approval represents one of the most significant milestones in the project’s history, as California moves from building bridges, viaducts, and grade separations to installing the infrastructure needed to operate trains at speeds up to 220 miles per hour.
“This program transforms from major civil construction into delivering an operating railway,” said California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Ian Choudri. “We are now accelerating toward installing the first true high-speed rail track ever built in the Western Hemisphere.”
Kiewit is one of North America’s largest construction and engineering firms, with extensive experience delivering major transportation, rail, highway, and infrastructure projects across the United States and Canada. For California High-Speed Rail, Kiewit will help oversee and construct the track and systems infrastructure needed to turn the completed civil works into an operational railway.
Stacey Witbeck is a California-based contractor specializing in rail transit construction, with a portfolio that includes light rail, commuter rail, streetcar, and passenger rail projects throughout the western United States. On the high-speed rail project, Stacey Witbeck will contribute its rail-construction expertise to the installation of track, systems, and related rail infrastructure.
Herzog is a Missouri-based rail and transit company known for building, operating, and maintaining passenger and freight rail systems nationwide. For California High-Speed Rail, Herzog will provide specialized railroad expertise for track installation and the integration of the systems required to safely operate high-speed train service.
The New Chair: A Newsom Ally
The new chair of the CAHSRA Board is Steven Kawa, the principal of Steve Kawa Strategic Advising who worked as Chief of Staff for Governor Gavin Newsom during his term as Mayor of San Francisco between 2004-2008. Newsom just appointed Kawa to the Board for a four-year term that will end years after the Governor leaves office in January.
Kawa is seen as a political appointment from the Governor, as he has little experience with managing transit projects or rail construction. He is regularly cited as a member of Newsom’s inner-circle of advisors and confidants and was even referred to as the “shadow mayor” in San Francisco.
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