The California High Speed Rail Authority (HSR) will be partnering with suppliers of cloud services for a construction package that will start up in about a month, according to CIO Jeff Vargas.
In an interview with Techwire’s Christina Gagnier, Vargas said the HSR has doubled its workforce within the past six months, particularly in the engineering and IT fields, and plans to double again within the next six months due to project CP1, or Construction Package 1. HSR is currently hiring for two senior supervisor positions in IT, with 15 additional staff positions to be filled in the next few months.
In a follow-up interview, Vargas explained that CP1 would be for an initial operating segment for high speed rail in the Central Valley, which will require support systems for public reports, notifications and workflow processes.
"The foundation is going to be based on delivering services to the business units, the financial packages that we need, the reporting packages, and the ability to provide that information in a timely manner for our constituents," Vargas said.
Many of the IT projects being developed, including content management and various databases will need to be completed in six months, quicker than most state technology projects, according to Vargas. The IT solutions will also include partnering with private vendors to build the cloud services needed in the high speed rail for what Vargas called "service on demand."
These needs translate into "big systems" that will require the flexibility to be put together quickly and expand, he said.
“In this day and age, you can’t start a project or write a business plan without an IT component, and that’s becoming more and more important," said Vargas.
The HSR is still working on establishing a long-term budget for the project, which in the meantime will be funded as each aspect is needed on a priority basis.
The plan is for a high-speed train to be able to run from San Francisco to the Los Angeles basin in under three hours at over 200 miles per hour by the year 2029. The ultimate goal, according to their website, is to extend the line to Sacramento and San Diego.
