The high-speed rail line between Paris and Lyon, known as the LGV Sud-Est, was completed at a cost of approximately €12 billion.
Overview of the LGV Sud-Est
Opening Year: 1981
Length: 409 km (approximately 254 miles)
The cost of constructing the high-speed rail line between Madrid and Barcelona (Spain) was approximately €6 billion. This line, which opened in 2008, spans 621 kilometers.
California High-Speed Rail (CAHSR) is the United States' first true high-speed rail project — a 800 km (500-mile), 320 km/h (200 mph), fully electrified, grade-separated system connecting San Francisco to Los Angeles — but in early 2026 not a single kilometer of track has been laid despite $18+ billion spent.
For comparison:
The cost of constructing the high-speed rail line between Madrid and Barcelona (Spain) was approximately €6 billion. This line, which opened in 2008, spans 621 kilometers.
California High-Speed Rail (CAHSR) is the United States' first true high-speed rail project — a 800 km (500-mile), 320 km/h (200 mph), fully electrified, grade-separated system connecting San Francisco to Los Angeles — but in early 2026 not a single kilometer of track has been laid despite $18+ billion spent.
Quite the difference, is it not?
So who lined their pockets? Let me guess.