The California High-Speed Rail Authority's $68-billion high-speed-rail project recently announced a probable joint-venture team to construct its first phase, but that doesn't mean trains will be leaving the station soon. The embattled project still faces lawsuits and questions, even from former supporters.
"High-speed rail is at a crucial point," says Quentin Kopp, former chairman of the authority. Over the past 18 months, "missteps and violations" of the 2008 Proposition 1A bond measure have changed public opinion, he says.