From the LA Times:
Among the key conclusions of a California High Speed Rail Authority panel of experts is that forecasts of up to 117 million annual riders by 2030 - which have helped support predictions that the system would generate billions in profits - need to be recalibrated to be more conservative and better reflect important factors that could affect ridership.... Among other things, the panel stated that Cambridge used a now-obsolete survey method, made unrealistic assumptions, failed to properly analyze what would happen to ridership for varying levels of train service, and did not consider the impact of airline competition. "Generally, Cambridge is well thought of," said David Brownstone, a UC Irvine economics professor who worked on the Berkeley study. "But the bigger take away from all this is that there are now two independent reviews that show things are lacking here."

For the full story, please visit http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-high-speed-ridership-20110729,0,....