Like it or not, construction has begun on the first visible piece of California’s bullet train. A viaduct in Madera County that spans the Fresno River is part of the first slate of construction projects for the state's long-planned high-speed rail network. Tim Sheehan of the Fresno Bee reports that the project still faces funding challenges even though construction has started. The project has roughly $26 billion in potential state and federal money over the next 14 years, about half of the amount needed to complete the 500-mile route. Sheehan joins us to explain whether the High Speed Rail Authority can raise the money needed to complete the project.

LINKS:

• L.A. Times: First bullet-train bridge set to rise in Central California
• Fresno Bee: California’s high-speed rail: A schedule under stress
• Fresno Bee: Farm Bureaus jump into Supreme Court high-speed rail case