California is counting on private companies to kick in as much as $35.5 billion toward the most expensive public-works project in U.S. history, a proposed high-speed rail line linking San Francisco with Los Angeles. Banks and other contractors who’ve studied the plan say not so fast.

Sacramento dining is about to get a little more convenient.

California’s $184-billion pension fund for school teachers chided Volkswagen AG for rigging some diesel engines to cheat on U.S. emission tests and said it is evaluating its exposure to losses from the scandal.

California Governor Jerry Brown abandoned a plan to cut gasoline use in half as part of an ambitious bill to combat climate change, after oil companies and business groups waged a multi-million dollar campaign against the effort.

“The administration’s ideas call for more than doubling the vehicle-registration fees and raising the price of fuel on all Californians,” Assembly Republican Leader Kristin Olsen said in a statement. “We disagree and think Californians have paid enough. Funds exist to fix our roads.”  

You don’t have to fasten a seatbelt and you don’t have to bring your seat to the fully upright and locked position. These are just two reasons why a root canal may now be less painful than your average commercial airline experience.

When car accident totaled Pedro Avila’s beloved ‘87 Volkswagen Cabriolet, he found himself desperate for money to repair the damage. A transportation industry veteran, Avila came up with Road Finch: eco-friendly and interactive marketing — by bicycle.

Captain Jeff Hedlund manages Brusco Tug & Barge’s Northern California operation in Stockton, where he started as a deckhand in 1973.

As Sacramento evolves as an active urban center with projects like on-street parklets, an intracity streetcar and expanded bike lanes, more Sacramento restaurants are finding ways to incorporate cycling into their business model and encourage active transportation.

If Portland can have one, Sacramento can, too. That is the sentiment among those in favor of running a 3.3-mile trolley line through the heart of the River City.