The California State High Speed Rail Authority (the Authority) in the United States has applied for $67 million in new federal funding to strengthen major safety upgrades along the Central Valley rail line.
Authorities are seeking grants to strengthen six current railroad crossings in Shafter, California.
A $67 million grant, part of the Federal Railroad Administration’s 2022 Railroad Crossing Retirement Program, will help phase out six overground railroad crossings on the BNSF Freight Railway in Shafter.
This will help move the Bakersfield Extension forward by building two flyovers on Poplar and Riverside Avenues.
The funding will also help complete the design and right-of-way purchase of four additional flyovers: Fresno Avenue, Shafter Avenue, Central Avenue and East Reld Highway.
In addition, it will enable continued funding for the Central Valley Training Center in Selma, California.
Securing the capital will allow work to be done on the first major structure in the Central Valley outside 119 miles (119 miles) currently under construction.
Agency CEO Brian Kelly said:
“These federal funds will make Shafter safer and prepare communities for high-speed rail construction—supporting living wage jobs, providing small business opportunities, promoting economic development, It improves mobility while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
Officials also have pending applications for about $1 billion in federal grants to acquire new trains capable of operating at speeds in excess of 200 miles per hour, in addition to advancing designs for the Bakersfield and Merced extensions.
In addition, it will be used to complete the first 119-mile section of the complete double-track system and build the station.
Federal funding could accelerate construction of an electrified high-speed rail line between Merced and Bakersfield by the end of the decade.
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