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California Governor Jerry Brown has doubled down on his support for the state’s proposed high speed rail system, despite the uncertainty about how to pay for it and growing public opposition.  But who can blame him?  If the rail system does get built, it will be the defining infrastructure project in the state for generations to come — a major legacy for any political leader.  Transportation experts can complain all they want about the high costs and cheaper alternatives, but once rail lines like this one get built, they tend to become an integral and even beloved part of the physical and political landscape, no matter how much they drain the budget.

But if the system does get built as planned, what impact will it have on California’s development patterns? Will it lead to sprawl around the new stations?  Certainly some real estate developers are salivating at the prospect of building master-planned suburbs in these areas. The cheap housing and quick commute on the bullet train will open otherwise rural and agricultural areas for development, particularly in the section of the proposed route between San Jose to Gilroy. To be sure, this sprawl-inducing effect may be ...

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