风萧萧_Frank
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May 4, 2024， California mocked over high-speed rail bridge to nowhere
0.3 miles completed. After 15 years. After $11.2 BILLION. $36.96 billion per mile.
加州耗资10亿美元的高铁高架桥火了！
花了3年、耗资10亿美元，美国加利福尼亚州高速铁路管理局建了段长1600英尺（约合488米）、距离地面25英尺（约合7.6米）高的弗雷斯诺河高架桥，2018年完工至今，仍孤零零地伫立在经常干涸的弗雷斯诺河道上，等不来“美国首个高速铁路系统”项目修到两端……
综合美国《纽约邮报》和英国天空新闻网报道，5月2日起，这段高架桥的俯瞰图在美国引发群嘲，加密货币狗狗币创始人比利·马库斯5月4日讽刺此桥是“人类有史以来最伟大的成就”，直言“加州真有本事”，特斯拉创始人兼首席执行官埃隆·马斯克也加入倒油队伍，转发相关内容并配上无奈哭的表情。
由于这段高架桥属于一项造价预算超过1000亿美元的加州重点高铁项目，该项目完工遥遥无期，美国民众和政客直斥美国政府的无能和腐败。
美国政府长期以来一直在规划一段连接加利福尼亚州两大城市旧金山和洛杉矶的高铁项目，是美国“第一个高速铁路系统”的第一期工程，项目预算超过1000亿美元，2008年批准了初始资金，2015年第一阶段工程开工。
到目前为止，整个项目的建设还在初期阶段，后续拨款用于第一阶段工程的环境规划，这段长约494英里（约合795公里）的高铁线路远未完工。
此次“出圈”的弗雷斯诺河高架桥2015年夏季开始施工，2018年完工，耗时3年，计划以公铁两用桥的形式投入使用。
5月2日起，一则显示高架桥飞架于干涸河道上的帖文在X平台迅速传开，比利·马库斯留言嘲讽这工程真是“令人印象深刻”，称按这进度，估计整个高铁项目还要三百多年才能完工，希望2400年能等到。他还讥讽预算可能不够，得花个“700000万亿美元”才能完工。
此外，马库斯发文调侃称：“这是人类有史以来最伟大的成就，用9年（实为3年）、花了110亿美元（实为10亿美元）建了这座1600英尺的高铁高架桥。走1600英尺需要花5分钟，所以建一个高铁高架桥非常重要。加州真有本事。”
马库斯弄错了一些数据，误以为桥才建好，并把9年来该项目多个高架桥和立交桥的总耗费110亿美元当成是单座高架桥的费用，但他的吐槽引起了美国网民的共鸣。
有网民调侃，加州州长加文·纽森（Gavin Newsom）看着这图可以说“我的任务完成了，是时候竞选总统了”。马库斯回复其称，州长“一定很擅长腐败和无能”。
还有人为这一基建“奇作”构思了其他增值方式：“应该原状保持住，并在周围建立一个博物馆，以证明加州多么能浪费。这样还能多赚钱。”马库斯拍手叫好，讽刺称“这是大规模失职的美丽标志”。
很多民众质疑有没有必要在这样一段没有明显湿地的路段斥巨资建一座高架，马斯克也转发相关帖子表达无奈。
根据2017年8月的施工现场图，高架桥下的两条河道当时有水流经。
也就是说，两条河道虽然常年干涸，但附近大坝水位过高时也有水，修建高架不难理解。不过，这一铁路项目路段的选址是否合理、建造时间是否过长、花费是否过高还是引起了讨论。
不仅网民们趁着这次弗雷斯诺河高架桥“出圈”狠狠吐槽了一把美国基建能力和政府工作效率，美国政客也对加州这一高铁项目进行了抨击。
来自加州的美国国会众议院共和党籍议员凯文·基利（Kevin Kiley）在X平台发文称：“加州高速铁路项目是美国历史上最大的无用功。这种程度的失职是对美国的警告。除此之外，真的尴尬。”
California mocked over high-speed rail bridge to nowhere
By Rich Calder May 4, 2024
California is taking of heat for celebrating the completion of an high-speed rail bridge that clearly goes nowhere — part of an $100 billion boondoggle project.
Critics — including Tesla founder Elon Musk and Dogecoin creator Billy Markus — are ripping the California High Speed Rail Authority after it boasted about the completion of a “Fresno River Viaduct,” a mere sliver of the state’s long-delayed, bullet-train project attempting to link San Francisco to Los Angeles
“This is the most remarkable human achievement ever,” joked Markus, the creator of the jokey cryptocurrency, on X Friday
A California agency is getting ripped for celebrating this high speed rail bridge — part of an $11 billion project that is reportedly in danger of being canceled.CA High-Speed Rail
“1600 feet of high speed rail after 9 years and 11 billion dollars it takes about 5 minutes to walk 1600 feet so a high speed rail for that is a really big deal,” added Markus, who also goes by “Shibetoshi Nakamoto.”
California High Speed Rail Authority later clarified that the project took three years to finish, and that it was actually completed in 2018.
Musk also chimed in, posting a sad, crying emoji to express his sentiments about the project, which is reportedly in danger of being scrapped.
That’s despite $11 billion in taxpayer dollars that have already being sunk into the construction already.
That figure includes the Fresno Viaduct and numerous other bridge and overpasses that have already been built for the first phase of the project — which will run from Bakersfield north of Los Angeles to Merced, which is about 80 miles from the Bay Area.
Critics were responding to an earlier post by the rail authority, touting that the Fresno River Viaduct in Madera County is one of the “first completed high-speed rail structures.”
Critics — including Tesla founder Elon Musk and Dogecoin creator Billy Markus — are ripping the California High Speed Rail Authority after it recently boasted about last year’s completion of a “Fresno River Viaduct.”CA High-Speed Rail
“At nearly 1,600 feet long, high-speed trains will travel over the riverbed and will run parallel with the BNSF Railroad,” the authority said on X.
Although reported estimates to complete the rail line will cost taxpayers about $100 billion, Markus fired back, quipping: “wow so impressive, can’t wait until year 2400 for this to finish for 700 quadrillion dollars.”
What do you think? Post a comment.
Venture Capitalist Patrick Blumenthal insinuated the authority should pump the brakes on praising itself, posting a breakdown of the lack of progress the rail-line project has made.
“0.3 miles completed. After 15 years. After $11.2 BILLION. $36.96 billion per mile,” he wrote on X.
California mocked over 'billion-dollar' bridge to nowhere
https://news.sky.com/story/california-mocked-over-billion-dollar-bridge-to-nowhere-13129715?
5 May 2024 12:48, UK
Authorities in the US have long planned a Los Angeles-to-San Francisco high-speed rail project which is expected to cost over $100bn, but critics have claimed they have very little to show for it - apart from a 0.3-mile bridge that goes nowhere.
Image:The Fresno River Viaduct in Madera County. Pic: California High Speed Rail
The state government of California has long planned for a Los Angeles to San Francisco high-speed rail project.
Despite initial funding being approved back in 2008, the line is still a long way off and expected to cost over $100bn in total.
So far, construction has only begun on the earliest phase and further funding has been used on environmental planning ahead in the Phase I System.
However, the California High-Speed Rail Authority recently publicised one of the completed sections of construction - finished back in 2018 and reported to cost $1bn on its own.
This is a 0.3-mile stretch of bridge, called The Fresno River Viaduct in Madera County, and it has attracted ridicule for going from nowhere to nowhere.
Pictures shared by the authority of the bridge show it connected to nothing at either end with some claiming it is indicative of the wider project.
It runs above a road and close to a number of houses - parallel to another rail track - but currently serves no purpose.
Elon Musk poked fun at the recent X post of the construction, with the billionaire posting a crying emoji in response to news of the project.
However, a number of those criticising it made false claims of the viaduct, its cost and time it took to complete it.
Since it was finished six years ago, after three years of construction, dozens more structures have been completed and there are over a hundred miles in active construction across the project.
Due to the vast scale of high-speed rails, they are often complex, expensive and lengthy projects - with the California High Speed Rail being no different.
The rail would come into use some time in the early 2030s but scrapping it reportedly remains a possibility.
California High Speed Rail has been approached for comment.
