Lol yeah you should look into how WILDLY over budget it is. With either the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act or the Inflation Reduction Act (not sure which one) they gave it I want to say $10 billion to try and complete just the FIRST segmet... One that isn't expected to get much use at all but they want to have something done!

I would say the government is pretty good at huge projects for national security.... because the pressure is there and they need to execute literally for the citizens but these other mega projects that don't have a fear of God thing behind them are just so much harder to do.

I just ripped this from Wiki so it might be a little wrong but the general idea is what we were both saying:

Construction of Phase 1 began in the Central Valley in 2015. Due to limited funding, the project is being built in sections. As of 2024, the state was targeting completion of a 171-mile (275 km) long Initial Operating Segment (IOS) connecting Merced and Bakersfield. The IOS is projected to commence revenue service as a self-contained high-speed rail system between 2030-2033, at a cost of $28–35 billion.[6][7] With a top speed of 220 mph (350 km/h), CAHSR trains running along this section would be the fastest in the Americas.[a]

From January 2015 to December 2023, a total of $11.2 billion had been spent on the IOS – which has 119 miles (192 km) under active construction – and on upgrades to existing rail lines in the San Francisco Bay Area and Greater Los Angeles, where Phase 1 is planned to share tracks with conventional passenger trains. The Authority has not secured funding to connect the Central Valley section with either the Bay Area or Los Angeles, which would require crossing several major mountain passes. As of 2024, the entirety of Phase 1 was projected to cost $106.2 billion.

Notice that the IOS part is in the middle of the state and doesn't reach either of the cities not to mention they are ETA mid 2030s now... YIKES

They should make a maglev train for that kind of money. The technology is there.