High-Speed Rail Proposal Sparks Outrage in Shafter
In the small community of Shafter, located just northwest of Bakersfield, the vision of high-speed rail has turned into a contentious issue.
Residents and local business owners are expressing strong discontent over the state’s plan to lay rail tracks directly through their downtown area. This project could displace numerous local businesses and cost taxpayers about $215 million per mile.
Cameron Hunter, the 31-year-old manager of a Chevrolet dealership that has been family-owned since 1947, shared that the altered proposal would result in the total loss of their auto lot due to the construction.
“We have nowhere else to go,” he remarked during a visit from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who was promoting the project’s progress in a nearby town.
Hunter further questioned why local leaders from Shafter or Wasco were not invited to discussions if the initiative was supposedly supported by the community.
In 2018, Shafter had initially agreed with the California High-Speed Rail Authority to construct an elevated line around 30 feet above ground, which was expected to minimize disruption. However, city officials changed their minds last October, citing costs, and decided to maintain above-ground tracks while adding overpasses and bridges, which would further expand the project’s reach.
Since the revision, Hunter stated that the state has “seized every possible asset” without completing the overall plan.
Representatives of the California High-Speed Rail Authority did not respond to requests for comments. The governor’s office also hasn’t provided feedback on the matter.
Hunter expressed frustration, noting that Newsom mentioned transparency and benefits to all. He added, “Then why not consult the people it affects directly? We’ve repeatedly stated our opposition, but the response has been indifference—’we’re pushing this through regardless.’
Amanda Kirshenman, who has owned Sun Country Flowers for 50 years, fears that the rail line will cut off customer access and ultimately devastate her business. “I think our quaint little downtown is going to be ruined,” she said. “This impacts real lives.”
Newsom seems to be keeping significant aspects of the costly project under wraps.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority has poured $15 billion into the endeavor over the last decade, but the only visible result has been a range of uninviting concrete constructions along the route.
Along the 171-mile stretch between Merced and Bakersfield, 58 separate construction projects have been observed over the past eight years, prompting one local politician to compare the structures to “Stonehenge.”
Alfredo Campos, a Shafter resident since 1995, labeled the entire initiative “a waste of money.” He reasoned, “If Amtrak had a bustling ridership, it might make sense. But the reality is, not many people use Amtrak here.”
Campos proposed that state funds could be better allocated towards water diversion efforts and bolstering the agricultural sector. “We’ve been in drought for years, and nothing has been done. Can we really justify building high-speed rail now?”
