39 replies to this topic

[KevinKorell]

Orange County, CA Register, 6/14/10:

SANTA ANA – In the neighborhood of 1500 North Bewley Street, a hole in a fence leads to a grimy outdoor corridor with graffiti-plastered walls that is used as a dumping ground for old television sets and other unwanted items.

Fifty years ago, this same corridor was part of the Pacific Electric Railway, or Red Car system, which provided mass transit service to Southern California from 1901 to 1961.

More of the article is here.

[KevinKorell]

Another agency, the Orangeline Development Agency, is studying Maglev for the same corridor: http://www.olda.org/

[Sloan]

http://www.pacificel...iccorridor.com/

[KevinKorell]

I have strong reservations about anything Orange County is involved in, after the CenterLine debacle. And its "replacement", beefed up Metrolink service within the OC, does not appear to be anywhere near fruition either. I don't understand why the Pacific Electric Corridor is considering almost every single mode, running the range of bus rapid transit, to light rail to modern streetcar to diesel multiple units to high speed rail. That's a pretty big range of possibilities, but the latter needs to be eliminated because it would be totally impractical, just as a Los Angeles Union Station to Anaheim HSR is impractical on its own without being part of a much larger network. It would be akin to running the Acela Express solely between Boston and Providence. For a 20-mile line between Paramount and Santa Ana my feeling is that the best alternatives would be a Metrolink branch (leaving the current OC Line at Santa Ana), or better yet a new light rail line branching off the existing Green Line in Paramount. It would provide a nice shortcut to the airport from Orange County in coordination with the proposed Crenshaw Line.

[Sloan]

Rail could make a comeback in O.C. with proposed streetcar line

A decade ago, Orange County transportation officials shelved plans for a 9.3-mile, billion-dollar light-rail system that would have run through Santa Ana and Costa Mesa to John Wayne Airport.

Political support for the long-planned and controversial CenterLine project had vanished, and policymakers turned to other options, including adding bus service and shifting transportation funds to road and freeway construction.
Now, rail transit is poised for a comeback in a region skewed much more than Los Angeles County, its rail-building neighbor to the north, toward the automobile.
http://www.latimes.c...0512-story.html

[KevinKorell]

Progressive Railroading , 5/13/15:

 

Orange County moving ahead with streetcar plans

 

A streetcar project in Orange County, Calif., is advancing toward the start of construction in 2017, following its recent acceptance into the project development phase of the New Starts federal grant program, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) officials announced Monday.

Here is more.

[KevinKorell]

Santa Ana Transit Vision webpage shows the preferred route for this streetcar line.

[KevinKorell]

Calif.’s OC Streetcar project marked its latest milestone this week as the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) board of directors agreed to a memorandum of understanding with the city of Santa Ana outlining the roles and responsibilities associated with the development, implementation, operations and maintenance of the project.

The OC Streetcar is planned to travel through the cities of Santa Ana and Garden Grove, intended to provide easy connections for people traveling from trains and buses to employment, retail and recreational areas.

The streetcar is planned to operate along a route just longer than four miles.

Related: [Photos] Streetcars around the world

“This agreement is another big step toward the realization of Orange County’s first modern streetcar,” said Santa Ana Mayor/OCTA Director Miguel Pulido. “The streetcar will improve the way people move through the heart of our county and provide needed transportation alternatives for a modern work environment.”

Up to seven streetcars are planned to run along the route, stopping at 12 stations. By 2035, the streetcar is expected to carry more than 6,000 riders a day. Initial estimates put the project cost at $250 million, with OCTA pursuing local, state and federal funding.

The streetcar is expected to move into the design phase later this year with construction planned to begin in 2017. On the current schedule, the streetcar would begin running in 2019.

Keywords

MOU   OC Streetcar   OCTA   streetcars   

 

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View the full article

[KevinKorell]

Orange County Register, Santa Ana, CA, 8/24/15:

 

Streetcar plan cleared by OCTA: Light-rail line would get $56 million from local Measure M taxes

 

In a bid to win federal approval and matching funds for a new foray into light rail, the board of the Orange County Transportation Authority on Monday pledged $56 million in local sales taxes to the OC Streetcar.

More

[Sloan]

 

 

OCTA selects engineering firm for Santa Ana-Garden Grove streetcar

The Orange County Transportation Authority board has selected an engineering firm to design the Santa Ana-to-Garden Grove streetcar project.

The board voted to hire HNTB Corporation to design the four-mile route from the Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center through the city’s downtown to the new transit hub at Harbor Boulevard and Westminster Avenue in Garden Grove.

http://mynewsla.com/...eetcar-project/