Roelof
van Ark, we hardly knew ye. 

The CEO of a California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) that
is now described as “embattled” even by the establishment media has
announced his resignation less than two years after taking office.
From the office of CHSRA spokeswoman Rachell Wall, who
didn’t have enough to worry about on her
last day on the job: 

At the regularly scheduled meeting of the Board of Directors,
held in Los Angeles today, Chairman of the Board Thomas J. Umberg
issued the following statement after CEO Roelof van Ark announced
his resignation, effective in two months:

“With admiration, I would like to thank Mr. van Ark for his
service to California and the high-speed rail project. The
announcement of his resignation will resonate throughout the State.
His energy, passion and dedication to this critically important
project are a testament to his character and his professionalism.
We are extremely lucky to have his continued counsel and advice as
we move to implement high-speed rail in California. I remain
grateful for his professionalism and friendship.”

Van Ark’s resignation came during a board meeting, and the CHSRA
flubbed the announcement. The reaction to his announcement followed
by just ten minutes a press release in which van Ark is quoted
speaking on a decision to run the line through the Antelope Valley
rather than paralleling Interstate 5 over the Grapevine: 

The Authority recently re-examined the Central Valley to Los
Angeles Basin segment, including a route along I-5 in Southern
California that extends over the Grapevine. The Grapevine alignment
was originally studied in the 2003-2005 Statewide Programmatic
Environmental Review and did not advance because preliminary
information suggested it could cost more than the Antelope Valley
route.

“Due to many changes which had occurred over time, we had to
look at as many alternatives as possible to ensure the best
statewide system possible,” said Roelof van Ark, CEO of the
Authority. “We conducted a conceptual study to update the
engineering data from 2005 to see if the Grapevine route would save
us time, distance and money. This was a prudent time to reevaluate
both routes, which have changed since the initial studies.

“This re-evaluation makes it clear that running the train
through the Antelope Valley will connect people in one of the
county’s fastest-growing areas, have fewer environmental impacts,
and afford more flexibility in route selection,” van Ark said.

Wall explains that van Ark will stick around until March and
board chairman Umberg will leave as soon as a replacement can be
found. 

The CHSRA is under tremendous pressure to begin work on the
Obama Administration’s chosen first leg of the project, a line
connecting Merced and Bakersfield. The September deadline for
groundbreaking and the odd location were needed to qualify the
project for ARRA stimulus funds. Wall says the federal requirement
is for the ARRA funds to be spent by 2017, and the September 2012
target was selected by working back from that. Should the project
not meet that deadline, she says, the federal funding would not
necessarily be jeopardized because the Golden State’s contract with
the federal government only “memorializes the schedule.” 

The project remains on schedule, Wall says: “We anticipate
groundbreaking by fall of this year. The next stage is to outline
the capital-outlay budget.”