The embattled head of Californias $231 billion high-speed rail scheme has stepped down, marking the latest setback for a project that has become a national symbol of government excess and mismanagement.
Ian Choudri, the chief executive officer of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, resigned after a tenure dogged by scandal and spiraling costs. As reported by The New York Post, his departure follows years of controversy surrounding the states bullet train effort, which has consumed billions of taxpayer dollars without delivering a single mile of operational track.
Choudri had already taken a leave of absence in February after allegedly intervening in a domestic dispute between his wife and daughter. Police arrested him on suspicion of domestic violence, but the Sacramento County District Attorneys Office ultimately declined to prosecute.
His leadership was further undermined by a scathing Inspector General audit that uncovered nearly $600,000 in improper spending by consultants tied to the rail authority. In one of the more bizarre revelations, the audit cited $592,900 in unallowable expenses, including rideshare trips to Tiki bars, an escape room outing, and first-class flight upgrades.
Against that backdrop, Choudri informed staff he was stepping aside to focus on important personal and family priorities. This has not been an easy decision, as leading the Authority has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding chapters of my professional life, he wrote in a resignation email obtained by CalMatters.
The high-speed rail project, billed as the first true bullet train system in the United States, has long been plagued by massive cost overruns, delays, and political controversy. Once sold to voters as a sleek, modern transit solution, it has instead become a cautionary tale about big-government promises that fail to materialize.
The Trump administration withdrew $4 billion in federal funding in July 2025, deriding the venture as the Train to Nowhere and pointing to its incomplete status and ballooning price tag. That decision exposed the projects fragile financial underpinnings and underscored conservative warnings about pouring more federal money into a chronically mismanaged enterprise.
Today, the authority projects total costs between $126 billion and $231 billion, a staggering sum for a system that still has not laid a single piece of track. Officials now warn the project will run out of money by 2027 unless they can secure substantial private investment to replace the lost federal support.
Choudris own compensation reflected the scale of the bureaucracy surrounding the troubled project. His pay was set at more than $534,000 this year, agency spokesperson Annie Parker told CalMatters, even as he faced mounting criticism over the authoritys mishandling of funds and failure to deliver tangible progress.
According to the outlet, Choudri had been staring down possible disciplinary action, including termination, over the misspent money flagged by auditors. Board members overseeing the project were also scheduled to debate whether he should receive a performance-based bonus of up to $25,000, a prospect likely to inflame taxpayers already frustrated by the projects trajectory.
Given the political winds in Sacramento, Choudris days at the helm appeared numbered regardless of his resignation. The board was in the middle of a two-day meeting as his exit became public, but it remains unclear who will replace him or when his final day in office will be.
The race to succeed Governor Gavin Newsom has only intensified scrutiny of the bullet train and its leadership. Democrat Xavier Becerra, widely seen as the frontrunner to become Californias next governor, made clear he would have removed Choudri if given the chance.
Theres going to be a new sheriff in town, Becerra told KCRA. I need to gain the confidence of the public; I cant gain it if I keep the same characters in place.
Republican candidate Steve Hilton has gone further, vowing to end the project outright and turn its failures into a permanent warning against bloated government. He has pledged to scrap the rail scheme and replace it with a Government Failures National Monument, a pointed jab at Sacramentos progressive leadership and its appetite for grand, taxpayer-funded experiments.
Hilton recently released a campaign ad contrasting what he portrays as a sunlit, thriving California under his administration with a frozen, dystopian version of the state under Becerra. In the spot, he blames Becerras hypothetical governorship for soaring gas prices, struggling small businesses, and worsening conditions on Skid Row, tying those problems to the same big-spending mindset that produced the bullet train debacle.
Despite the mounting criticism, Choudri has insisted his tenure marked a turning point for the project. I took on a project facing significant challenges and serious questions about its prospects for success, and led its turnaround into a successful program, he wrote, defending his record even as the authority confronts a funding cliff and a crisis of public confidence.
For now, the California High-Speed Rail Authority has not announced a successor or a revised plan to rescue the venture from its financial and political quagmire. The California Post has reached out to the agency for comment, as voters, taxpayers, and candidates alike weigh whether this long-promised bullet train will ever be more than an expensive monument to failed progressive governance.
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