High Desert Corridor Project Lands Labor Agreements (UPDATED 6/24)
The HDC High-Speed Rail Project in December 2023 received a $500,000 grant through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Corridor Identification and Development Program for scope development, schedule, and cost estimate for preparing, completing, or documenting its service development plan. Also in December, the California Transportation Commission allocated $8 million from the California State Transportation Agency’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP) to support preliminary engineering and other project development activities. The TIRCP grant award allocation will be matched by $8.5 million in Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Measure M sales tax funds.
The project is estimated to generate $12 billion in economic activity for the Antelope Valley and surrounding region, according to the HDC JPA, which includes Los Angeles County, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and the cities of Adelanto, Lancaster, Palmdale, and Victorville. Additionally, it is slated to serve a growing intercity travel market consisting of more than 70 million annual trips by 2035, and anticipated to attract most of its ridership from auto and air travel, thereby reducing GHG emissions by nearly 46,000 metric tons annually, the agency said.
During its design and construction phases, the HDC High-Speed Rail Project is estimated to generate more than 61,000 one-year full-time equivalent construction jobs, according to HDC JPA.
The signed labor agreements (download below) will provide jobs to build, operate and maintain the Palmdale-to-Victorville line. The HDC JPA Board approved a Community Workforce Agreement with the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California, and Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council, the San Bernardino-Riverside Building and Construction Trades Council, and the Signatory Craft Councils and Unions. The Board also agreed to a Memorandum of Understanding with The High-Speed Rail Labor Coalition for operations and maintenance. Labor Coalition members include the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division; Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen; International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Mechanical and Engineering Department; National Conference of Firemen and Oilers 32BJ/SEIU; Transportation Communications Union; International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers; Brotherhood of Railway Carmen; International Brotherhood of Boilermakers; Transport Workers Union of America; American Train Dispatchers Association; International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers-Transportation Department; Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen; and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.
The agreements were signed at the Palmdale Transportation Center, which the HDC JPA said will be demolished and replaced with “a state-of-the-art transportation hub that will anchor the HDC High Speed Rail Project.”
“We are here today [July 8, 2024] to celebrate the beginning of an incredible partnership on a project that will improve the lives of countless millions of future riders and provide thousands of high-quality jobs in Los Angeles County and beyond for years to come,” said HDC JPA Chair and Los Angeles County Fifth District Supervisor Kathryn Barger, according to the Antelope Valley Press.
“We were delighted to help facilitate these two landmark labor agreements, which will create thousands more good, union jobs in the growing high-speed rail industry,” U.S. High Speed Rail Coalition Political Director Ezra Silk said in a July 9, 2024, statement.
“We are grateful to U.S. High Speed Rail for their help in making these crucial labor agreements a reality,” HDC JPA Executive Director Arthur Sohikian added in a July 9, 2024, statement.
On June 23, 2025, HDR announced that it will provide a wide range of engineering services for the project. These include rail design, systems and station integration, operations and maintenance facility design, systems planning, bridge design, right of way coordination, environmental support services, stakeholder coordination, risk management, procurement support, and contract administration, among others.
According to the design firm, the project is currently completing environmental documentation and preliminary engineering; it is scheduled to proceed to construction in the early 2030s.
“The High Desert Corridor will improve connectivity and accessibility for millions of travelers, generate billions in economic activity, and open new opportunities for the whole region,” said Girair Kotchian, HDR’s Project Manager. “It’s a privilege to be involved with such a momentous project for Southern California.”
“Delivering the engineering and advisory services associated with the High Desert Corridor requires a multidisciplinary team that can maximize a broad array of opportunities and tackle diverse challenges with resilience, technical expertise and unwavering focus,” HDR Global Transit Director Matt Tucker added. “We have an exceptional team gathered with world-class expertise in large-scale transit corridors. This is great news for Southern California and the future of high-speed rail in the United States.”
