California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Ian Choudri resigned Wednesday night as the troubled project faces mounting financial pressure and scrutiny over questionable consultant travel expenses, including taxpayer-funded trips to a nightclub, a gym, and an escape room.The high-speed rail board appoi nted state Department of Finance Director Joe Stephenshaw as interim president Thursday morning following Choudri's resignation Wednesday, which took effect immediately, as CalMatters reports. According to KTLA, Choudri, who took over the troubled project in August 2024, cited “important personal and family priorities” in his resignation letter. He also claimed to have turned around a project that had faced serious questions about its prospects for success.Choudri’s departure reportedly follows a tumultuous two-year tenure marked by budget woes, project delays, transparency concerns, and scrutiny over nearly $600,000 in taxpayer money spent on questionable trips by rail authority consultants.A recent state investigation found that the authority had reimbursed four consulting firms for hundreds of thousands of dollars in questionable travel expenses between 2024 and 2026. Per CalMatters, the trips reportedly included visits to a nightclub, an escape room, a gym, a tiki bar, and a cigar lounge, along with first-class flights and premium rides billed to the state. Some trips involved travel to Folsom, where Choudri has a home.Investigators found that many expenses lacked adequate justification and that the authority had reimbursed consultants without sufficient review. The legal consultant reportedly billed the state $86,500 for travel time on 30 trips between Denver and Sacramento in a single year, plus another $40,800 in reimbursements.Earlier this month, the board reportedly restricted Choudri's contracting authority, requiring in-house legal counsel to approve contracts worth less than $25 million. The board had also been considering further disciplinary action, including possible termination.On Wednesday, authority staff reported that the consulting firms had repaid nearly $1.3 million to the agency. CalMatters reports that the board also approved a $772.1 million contract with Germany-based Siemens Mobility to design, build, and test three seven-car high-speed trains by 2030. The authority could pay up to another $63.7 million in import duties and tariffs.Choudri's departure follows a turbulent tenure marked by financial setbacks, delays, and scrutiny over the project's management. According to KTLA, the authority lost roughly $4 billion in federal funding under President Donald Trump's administration in 2025 after missing deadlines tied to train procurement.California voters approved nearly $10 billion in bond funding for the project in 2008, when the full system connecting San Francisco and Los Angeles was expected to cost substantially less than current estimates. The authority now puts the cost of the full project at between $126 billion and $231 billion, per CalMatters.The current 171-mile Central Valley segment between Merced and Bakersfield remains under construction, with completion now expected by 2034. The state inspector general reportedly warned in July that the authority could run out of cash by December 2027.Board chair Steve Kawa said the resignation reflected the board's commitment to accountability and transparency.“Californians deserve a project they can trust,” Kawa said.Choudri’s departure also follows a February arrest on suspicion of domestic battery, which SFist reported at the time. Prosecutors later declined to file charges in the case.Related: California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Caught Up in Some Manner of Domestic Battery Incident ...read more read less