California's embattled high-speed rail project — referred to by critics as the “train to nowhere — is set to lose $4 billion in unspent federal funding by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), announced Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on July 17.

Citing 16 years of failure, no completed high-speed track, and escalating costs, Duffy declared the project a mismanaged and over-budget "boondoggle," reports Fox News.

"This is California’s fault. Governor Newsom and the complicit Democrats have enabled this waste for years. Federal dollars are not a blank check – they come with a promise to deliver results," Duffy said in a statement. 

The announcement comes after months of scrutiny, including a comprehensive compliance review, along with the failure of the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) to address serious project deficiencies. 

"After over a decade of failures, CHSRA’s mismanagement and incompetence has proven it cannot build its train to nowhere on time or on budget. It’s time for this boondoggle to die. President Trump and I will always fight to ensure your tax dollars only go to projects that accomplish great, big, beautiful things." 

- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy  

The high-speed rail efforts began in 2009 with the goal of building a train that could travel between Los Angeles and San Francisco in less than three hours. Newsom walked back the scope of the project in 2019, setting out to build just a 170-mile stretch between Merced and Bakersfield.

The review found that zero miles of high-speed track have been laid since ground was broken 10 years ago, and the cost continues to balloon.

"To the Law abiding, Tax paying, Hardworking Citizens of the United States of America, I am thrilled to announce that I have officially freed you from funding California’s disastrously overpriced, "HIGH SPEED TRAIN TO NOWHERE," Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.