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[CNJRoss]

Curbed San Francisco, 9/20/19
 

California High-Speed Rail board votes to bring trains to San Francisco

 

“Blended route” for the way to San Jose—and beyond

 

 

California’s ongoing bullet train project is late, over-budget, and politically assailed everywhere from Sacramento to the White House, but the nearly $80 billion venture still (pardon the term) chugs along, as the High Speed Rail Authority board voted Tuesday for routes that will eventually connect trains to the Bay Area.

 

Out of four route proposals, board members favored a Merced-to-San Jose connection designated Alternative Four, one that “blended configuration between San Jose and Gilroy in the existing Caltrain and Union Pacific Railroad corridors before continuing to a dedicated high-speed rail alignment through Pacheco Pass” through a tunnel.

 

SNIP

 

As Caltrain explains it, “blended” means that future bullet trains will use a combination of existing rail infrastructure from regional transit agencies along with newly built trackways laid down specifically for high-speed rail, potentially shaving billions off the final price.

 

More here.

[CNJRoss]

Railway Age, 2/28/22

 

CHSRA Releases Final EIR/EIS for Northern California Project

 

 

The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) on Feb. 25 released for Board approval a Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) for an approximately 90-mile extent of the 145-mile San Jose to Merced Project Section in Northern California.

 

The San Jose to Merced Project Section (see map below) would provide service from Scott Boulevard, just north of the San Jose Diridon Station, to a downtown Merced station. It comprises three separate portions: San Jose to Central Valley Wye, Central Valley Wye, and Ranch Road to Merced. The portion of the Project Section analyzed in this Final EIR/EIS is from Scott Boulevard, just north of San Jose Diridon Station in Santa Clara, to Carlucci Road in Merced County. This is referred to as the San Jose to Central Valley Wye Project Extent, which would extend 90 miles, passing through Santa Clara, San Benito and Merced counties and the cities of Santa Clara, San Jose, Morgan Hill, Gilroy and Los Banos.

 

 

 

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[CNJRoss]

Progressive Railroading, 4/29/22

 

CHSRA gains environmental clearance for another project section

 

The project section will connect existing construction in the Central Valley to San Jose’s Diridon Station. Photo – CHSRA

 

The California High-Speed Rail Authority has completed the Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement and approved the 90-mile, San Jose-to-Merced project section in northern California.

 

The developments signal the completion of the environmental clearance for nearly 400 miles of the authority’s 500-mile Phase 1 alignment from San Francisco to Los Angeles/Anaheim, including a stretch between Merced and Palmdale, CHSRA officials said in a press release. The section between Burbank and Los Angeles was environmentally cleared in January.

Continue here.    

[CNJRoss]

CHSRA press release

 

NEWS RELEASE: High-Speed Rail Board Completes Environmental Clearance to Connect Silicon Valley and Central Valley

 

April 28, 2022

 

SAN JOSE, CALIF. –  The California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) Board of Directors today certified the Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) and unanimously approved the approximately 90-mile San Jose to Merced project section in Northern California. This action completes the environmental clearance for nearly 400 miles of the high-speed rail project’s 500-mile Phase 1 alignment from San Francisco to Los Angeles/Anaheim – including a contiguous stretch between Merced and Palmdale plus January’s clearance of the Burbank to Los Angeles section.

 

The Board’s actions mark their first certification of a project section environmental document in the Northern California region and the first in the San Francisco Bay Area.

 

“Today’s approval represents another major milestone and brings us one step closer to delivering high-speed rail between the Silicon Valley and the Central Valley,” Authority CEO Brian Kelly said. “The Authority is poised to make the vision of high-speed rail in the Bay Area a reality. We look forward to continued collaboration with our federal, state and local partners to advance the project in Northern California.”

 

This project section will connect the existing construction in the Central Valley to San Jose’s Diridon Station, slashing travel times and improving mobility in both regions. The high-speed rail system will make the trip from Fresno to San Jose in just one hour, compared to three hours by car today.

 

“I am grateful, as are all of us in the City of San Jose, for the extraordinary work that’s now culminated in this environmental document reflecting thousands of hours of stakeholder outreach and an enormous amount of environmental analysis,” said San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo. “Completion of this critically important high-speed rail project helps the state expand economic opportunity and affordable housing, two critical goals for all of us.”

 

The Board’s certification of the San Jose to Merced Final EIR/EIS and approval of the project section is a critical milestone that moves the project section closer to being “shovel ready” for when pre-construction and construction funding becomes available.

 

The Authority Board of Directors selected Alternative 4 as the approved project alignment among the four alignment alternatives studied. This alternative modernizes and electrifies the existing rail corridor between San Jose and Gilroy, allowing for both high-speed rail and Caltrain service.

 

“Next to San Jose, Gilroy will be the next most significant transit hub on this stretch,” said Gilroy Mayor Marie Blankley. “Gilroy Transit Center is very much ready for this to happen.”

 

East of Gilroy, the alignment includes more than 15 miles of tunnels through the Pacheco Pass in the Diablo Range. The Board will consider certification for the final environmental document for the San Francisco to San Jose project section this summer.

 

 

The Final EIR/EIS and the Board’s certification and approval resolutions are on the Authority’s website: www.hsr.ca.gov.

 

This approval was just one of several actions taken by the Board during the two-day board meeting, during the meeting they also:

• Unanimously approved moving forward with the design of the four stations (Merced, Fresno, Kings-Tulare and Bakersfield) in the Central Valley.
• Unanimously approved a multi-million dollar funding and planning agreement with the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority (LA Metro) to modernize the historic LA Union Station through the Link Union Station (Link US) project. Union Station will be a major connective hub for California’s future high-speed rail service in the LA basin.
• Adopted the 2022 Business Plan.

 

California high-speed rail is currently under construction along 119 miles in the Central Valley at 35 active job sites. To date, more than 7,500 construction jobs have been created since the start of construction. For more on construction, visit: www.buildhsr.comExternal Link.

 

 

The following link contains recent video, animations, photography, press center resources and latest renderings: https://hsra.box.com/s/vyvjv9hckwl1dk603ju15u07fdfir2q8External Link. These files are all available for free use, courtesy of the California High-Speed Rail Authority.

[CNJRoss]

CHSRA news release

NEWS RELEASE:​ $3 Million Grant Awarded to Study Pacheco Pass Wildlife Overcrossing Near Future High-Speed Rail Line

 

April 19, 2022

 

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) and the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency, along with partners from Caltrans, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and Pathways for Wildlife, are applauding the award of a $3.125 million grant to continue efforts to protect wildlife movement in Northern California.  The California Wildlife Conservation Board grant will fund the planning, design, environmental review and permitting of a proposed wildlife overcrossing spanning State Route 152, near the San Jose to Merced high-speed rail project section.

 

“This grant aligns with the Authority’s planning efforts to increase wildlife connectivity in the San Jose to Merced project section,” said Northern California Regional Director Boris Lipkin. “The award reflects the wide range of support and collaboration we’ve had with key partners focused on protecting sensitive habitats, preserving wildlife movement, and enhancing the natural environment in the project area.”

 

In sensitive wildlife areas along the planned high-speed rail corridor, such as Coyote Valley, Pacheco Pass and the Grasslands Ecological Area, the Authority has incorporated project elements to allow for wildlife movement – and, in many cases, improvements on current conditions.

 

“Without this being a team effort sitting at the table to develop a shared solution, I don’t think this outcome would have come to pass,” said Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency Executive Officer Edmund Sullivan.

 

The grant will support four years to advance planning and environmental review for the proposed overcrossing, which includes conducting a habitat modeling analysis, completing a feasibility study, preparing a project initiation report under Caltrans’ oversight and advancing the project to 65% design. With additional funding, the Habitat Agency would also oversee the preparation of an environmental document under the California Environmental Quality Act that will evaluate at least two build alternatives.

 

Pathways for Wildlife has worked with the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency for the past three years conducting a wildlife connectivity study along SR-152 in the Pacheco Pass and within the Habitat Agency’s property, the Pacheco Creek Reserve.

 

“By collectively working on this project together, we will not just improve the safety of both wildlife and drivers along the highway but also ensure the long-term genetic health for species such as mountain lions and badgers by improving the ability for wildlife movement through this critical wildlife linkage,” said Pathways for Wildlife Co-Principal Tanya Diamond.

 

The Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency has a major role in implementing the Habitat Plan, which was developed by the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Agency, Santa Clara Valley Water District, County of Santa Clara, and the Cities of Gilroy, Morgan Hill and San Jose. The Habitat Plan provides streamlined state and federal permitting for public and private projects, while offering a comprehensive and effective way to address impacts of those projects on endangered and threatened species and their habitats. For more information about the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency please visit: www.scv-habitatagency.orgExternal Link.

 

Environmental approval of the Authority’s San Jose to Merced project section through the Pacheco Pass will be considered at the Authority’s Board Meeting on April 27 and 28, 2022.

California High-Speed Rail is under construction along 119 miles with more than 35 active job sites. To date, more than 7,500 construction jobs have been created since the start of construction.

 

For more on progress of the nation’s first high-speed rail system visit: www.buildhsr.comExternal Link

 

The following link contains recent video, animations, photography, press center resources and latest renderings: https://hsra.app.box.com/s/vyvjv9hckwl1dk603ju15u07fdfir2q8External Link

 

These files are all available for free use, courtesy of the California High-Speed Rail Authority.