High Speed Rail Takes Off in California, or Does It?
Host:
Produced by:
Subscribe to this Podcast:
Listen to/Watch entire show:
The biggest public works project in California history might begin next year. Then again, it might not. Central Valley farmers are already in court challenging the first leg of the bullet train from LA to San Francisco. Polls show voters who approved it four years ago are against it now. But last week the legislature agreed to allocate $8 billion in state and federal funds for a project expected to total $68 billion. Where will the rest of the money come from? Will cities, counties and private land owners ever agree on which routes the track should follow? On our rebroadcast of today's To the Point, is America ready for unmanned drones?
Banner image: Artist's rendering of one of the the high speed trains, courtesy of the California High Speed Rail Authority
Main Topic
Will California Really Get High Speed Rail? ()
The state legislature has given Governor Brown and President Obama a victory by approving $4.7 billion in bonds to begin building a bullet train from Los Angeles to San Francisco. That sewed up an additional $3.3 billion in federal money. But the total project will cost at least $68 billion and take decades to finish — if the rest of the money can ever be found.
Guests:
- Ralph Vartabedian: Los Angeles Times
- Joe Simitian: California State Senate
- Lee Ann Eager: Fresno County Economic Development Corporation, @fresnocountyedc
- Anja Raudabaugh: Madera County Farm Bureau
- David Herd: Buro Happold
Links:
- Vartabedian on high speed rail officials rebuffing proposal from French railway
- Fresno County Economic Development Corporation on high speed rail
- Madera County Farm Bureau on high speed rail
- Buro Happold on the Anaheim Regional Transportation Center
- Herd's (Architects Newspaper) op-ed on the future riding on high speed rail
- Simitian's floor statement on high speed rail (video)
Main Topic
Is America Ready for Unmanned Drones? ()
Unmanned drones include Predators and Reapers able to carry missiles and 500-pound bombs. The new Switchblade weighs six pounds all by itself, fits into a soldier's rucksack, and can take out a rooftop sniper without destroying the building he stands on. Drones small enough to fly inside buildings will be available soon. Congress has ordered the FAA to develop new rules for the use of drones for civilian purposes inside the United States, anticipating that some 30,000 drones of all sizes will be using American airspace before 2020. In the meantime, the $6 billion drone industry has developed a voluntary Code of Conduct. What are the civilian applications? What are the risks? Can rules be developed quickly enough to keep up with a spreading technology?
Guests:
- Bill Hennigan: Los Angeles Times, @wjhenn
- Peter Singer: Brookings Institution, @peterwsinger
- Catherine Crump: American Civil Liberties Union, @CatherineNCrump
- Steve Gitlin: AeroVironment, @aerovironment
Links:
- Preserving Freedom from Unwarranted Surveillance Act of 2012 (SB 3287)
- First Street Research
- Hennigan on drone industry adopting voluntary guidelines for flying over US airspace
- Singer's 'Wired for War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century'
- ACLU on need for privacy guidelines for domestic drone use
- AeroVironment on the unmanned aircraft systems
Underwriters
Which Way L.A.? is made possible in part by the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation, the Nathan Cummings Foundation, and the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, which supports study and research into policy issues of the Los Angeles region.
Engage & Discuss
Further the conversation with your thoughts and comments. Agree, disagree, present a different perspective -- engage.
For information and guidelines click: Terms of Service | Privacy Policy
Please note, comments are moderated. KCRW reserves the right to edit and or remove posts deemed off-topic, abusive or not in accordance with KCRW's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
