Central Valley update: 87 miles of guideway complete; right-of-way acquisition finished for initial 119-mile segment

Ed Fenn, the Authority's chief of construction, told the Finance and Audit Committee on June 24 that April'period construction activity in the Central Valley included roughly $71.2 million in expenditures, continued progress on structures and guideway, and a key right-of-way milestone.

Fenn said 62 structures are complete, 27 are underway and three were not yet started in CP 1 because of required sequencing (for example, railroad relocations before structure work can begin). Guideway construction stands at 87 miles complete, 23 miles underway and nine miles not started. Utility relocation progress is high, at 94 percent complete overall, with 40 relocations in progress and 66 not started.

A milestone cited by Fenn: "We now have the 2,288 parcels required for the construction of the initial segment, the 119. So that's 100 percent, uh, complete," he said, calling it "a milestone for the Authority and for the team." He also reported a craft workforce around 1,461 workers for April.

Fenn described railhead preparations and owner-furnished material coordination, saying contractors plan to mobilize to the railhead in two to three months and that activity will intensify in October and November. Program schedule charts shown to the committee indicate installation of track and systems by the end of 2029 in order to meet grant requirements; Fenn said the team expects pre-track mobilization in Q3 2026 and track-laying activity beginning in Q4 2026 for certain CP segments, with some CP completions extending into 2027. "It's clear to the whole team, and it's achievable to lay this track in 2026," Fenn said.

Committee members asked clarifying questions about sequencing and schedule confidence; Fenn said detailed schedules and material-delivery plans are being finalized and that the team will provide more detail at the next meeting.