Is San Jose Destined to Be a Train Wreck for California Transportation?

The Bay Area City Could Be the State's Rail Capital. But Plans Are Veering Off Track

Can Californians find their way to San Jose?

That spin on the old song, made famous by Dionne Warwick, might be the most important question facing the state’s transportation system. Because plans to bring trains and transit into the 21st century depend on transforming the Bay Area city of 1 million people into our state’s rail capital.

But, in dysfunctional California, can all these plans stay on track?

Transportation expectations for San Jose are a function of the economy—it’s the capital of Silicon Valley—and of geography. San Jose sits about halfway between California’s …

by Joe Mathews | June 21, 2022

Murder on the High-Speed Rail

All of the California Leaders Who Claim to Be Saving the Bullet Train Are Prime Suspects in Its Demise

by Joe Mathews | May 24, 2022

“Stop where you are,” declared the short, mustachioed, dandily dressed detective, in a European accent, as he entered the Assembly chamber.

“I am informed there has been a murder, right here …

Dear Mr. President, Please Save California’s High-Speed Rail

'Amtrak Joe' Is the Golden State's Last, Best Hope for Making a Rail From the Bay Area to L.A. a Reality

by Joe Mathews | April 27, 2021

Dear Joe,

I know I should call you Mr. President, but there’s no time for formalities. You must move fast if you’re going to save California’s high-speed rail project.

No malarkey: It …

How Taiwan’s High-Speed Trains Expose California’s Lack of Nerve

While the Golden State Made Excuses, the Poorer, Smaller Island Country Transformed Its National Transit System

by Joe Mathews | October 22, 2019

When it comes to fast trains, a California consensus has hardened: High-speed rail is beyond our capabilities.

We may be the world’s high-tech capital, but we say that high-speed rail …

Merced, Where California Stores Its Big Plans

Unfinished Dreams for High-Speed Rail and Higher Education Falter Statewide But Find a Home in the Central Valley

by Joe Mathews | February 25, 2019

Have any grand but unfocused ambitions? Have an idea but no strategy to execute it? How about any half-finished projects clogging up your garage?

Send them to Merced. That’s what the …

If Californians Won’t Ride Trains, How Come Our Family’s Amtrak Trip Was Mobbed?

A Journey on the Pacific Surfliner Shows Why We Need More High-Speed Rail, Not Less

By Joe Mathews | February 26, 2018

If any of the conventional wisdom about trains in California is true—that no one ever rides them, that Californians prefer to drive or fly, and that high-speed rail or other …

High Speed Rail