Community Leaders Rally Support for Caltrain Modernization’s $20 Million Grant Application
Community Leaders Rally Support for Caltrain Modernization’s $20 Million Grant Application
August 23, 2013
A broad coalition of the region’s most prominent elected officials and community leaders is rallying in support of Caltrain’s $20 million request for federal funding to help electrify and upgrade the performance, operating efficiency, capacity, safety and reliability of the Peninsula commuter rail service. The Caltrain Modernization Program is an essential part of the region’s efforts to meet increasing ridership demand and alleviate local and regional traffic congestion, making it possible to operate quieter, cleaner and more frequent train service to more riders.
The coalition supporting the application for funding through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s $474 million TIGER V program includes several local, state and federal elected officials, along with a broad array of regional transportation agencies and local advocacy groups.
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If approved, the $20 million grant would help to fund Caltrain’s Communications Based Overlay Signal System/Positive Train Control (CBOSS/PTC). This advanced signal system includes federally-mandated safety improvements that must be installed in all of the nation’s commuter rail corridors by 2015. The new technology will eliminate the risk of train-to-train collisions, reduce derailments and provide additional safety measures for railway workers.
The signal system also will provide the foundation for the electrification of Caltrain. That project, set to be in operation (it will not be completed, only in operation) in 2019, will allow for faster travel times and/or increased train service to Caltrain stations, while also reducing noise impacts and greenhouse gas emissions. Electrification is also essential for the operation of high-speed rail service in the Bay Area.
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Caltrain and a host of regional funding partners including the California High Speed Rail Authority have agreed to deliver $1.5 billion in local, state and federal funding for the electrification and CBOSS/PTC projects. The award of TIGER V funding would help fulfill those commitments.
Among those thus far who have expressed support for Caltrain’s grant application are:
- Gov. Jerry Brown
- U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer
- U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein
- U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi
- U.S. Representative Anna Eshoo
- U.S. Representative Mike Honda
- U.S. Representative Zoe Lofgren
- U.S. Representative Jackie Speier
- State Senator Jerry Hill
- State Senator Mark Leno
- State Senator Leland Yee
- State Assemblymember Nora Campos
- State Assemblymember Rich Gordon
- State Assemblymember Kevin Mullin
- State Assemblymember Phil Ting
- State Assemblymember Leland Yee
- San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee
- Bay Area Council
- Bay Area Air Quality Management District
- Friends of Caltrain
- Metropolitan Transportation Commission
- San Mateo County Building Construction and Trade Council
- San Mateo County Economic and Development Association
- San Mateo County Transportation Authority
- Sierra Club
- Silicon Valley Leadership Group
"The PTC system will improve safety, enable more dependable passenger service, improve grade crossings, and enable a future blended commuter rail and High Speed Rail system," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein.
The U.S. Department of Transportation is expected to announce the TIGER V grant recipients in the fall.
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About Caltrain: Owned and operated by the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, Caltrain provides commuter rail service from San Francisco to San Jose, with limited commute service to Gilroy. Caltrain has enjoyed nearly three years of consecutive monthly ridership increases, surpassing more than 50,000 average weekday riders earlier this year. While the Joint Powers Board assumed operating responsibilities for the service in 1992, the railroad will celebrate 150 years of continuous passenger service in 2014. Planning for the next 150 years of Peninsula rail service, Caltrain is on pace to electrify the corridor by 2019, reducing diesel emissions by 90 percent and adding more service to more stations.
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Media Contact: Will Reisman, 650.508.7704