California High Speed Rail Business Plan and Project Commentary in Palo Alto

Despite the rainy night, as many as 500 people showed up at the Palo Alto City Chambers which overflowed into an ante room and the lobby.  The meeting started at 7 pm and ended after midnight. The city anticipated these crowds and set up monitors so the public wasn’t turned away. It was a circus-like atmosphere with big banners from the unions advertising their trades, no doubt in support of the project.

State Senators Simitian from Palo Alto and Lowenthal from Long Beach, Chairmen of the Budget Sub-committee on Transportation and Senate Transportation Committee respectively, came to hear first-hand the people’s concerns about the High Speed Rail Project.  Bob Doty of the Peninsula Rail Program presented his ideas of how the rail project could work well with the Peninsula through CSS, and Jeffrey Barker, CHSRA’s Deputy Director of Communications, attempted to go through the ridership vs. fare questions.   He did not have the answer Senator Simitian was looking for which was how the state could provide a guarantee to private investors without the use of public funds.  This was a chief concern of the Legislative Analyst’s Office.  Barker promised that their legal department would deliver the answer before the budget committee takes its HSR funding vote.

Peninsula Cities Consortium (PCC), composed of Atherton, Belmont, Burlingame, Menlo Park and Palo Alto, asked for an investment grade ridership study to be conducted by an independent source before additional funding is allowed. Without the independent source it’s like having the “fox guarding the chicken coop,” said Palo Alto Mayor Pat Burt.

In addition to the new ridership study, The PCC asked the State Senators for several items:

• Re-do the business plan

• Determine what kind of business it will be: franchise or state agency

• Correct deficiencies identified by the LOA

• Disclose accurate information about what the Peninsula construction funds can achieve

• Fund & complete the remaining appointments (5 out of 8) to the Peer Review Committee

• CHSRA should commit to CSS on Peninsula and abide by its results

• Adopt CSS for the recertified EIR for the greater Bay Area

Over 80 people testified and another 35 left before their names were called.  They covered a myriad of subjects.   Of the 25 people who offered seemingly unequivocal support of the HSR project, 15 cited jobs as the primary reason.   Most of the people were in favor of the High Speed Rail concept but wanted to make sure it was done right.  There were many comments concerning the ridership numbers, illegalities of AB3034, putting it back on the ballot, program funding, questions concerning the HSR Authority’s ability to lead the project. Here are a few highlights of citizens’ comments:

Jennifer Pfaff, Burlingame, offered that the” state doesn’t have the financial luxury of building a system that will be redundant of what already exists on the Peninsula.”  HSR should terminate in San Jose allowing passengers to step across the platform to board an electrified, grade separated Caltrain. “The difference in travel time would amount to three minutes longer.”

Russ Cohen, past councilman of city of Burlingame, suggested the senators start “the exit strategy process”-.  He offered, “What metrics, what data -- what critical mass of opposition do you need -- to reach the conclusion that many of your constituents have already reached. High Speed Rail’s benefits do not outweigh its impacts and it is not worthy of further funding.”

Rita Wespi, Californians Advocating Responsible Rail Design (CARRD), blamed the Peninsula’s predicament on the state’s flawed CEQA environmental review process which allows the CHSRA to approve its own projects. She requested new legislation to address that flaw, and pointed out the “social injustice” of requiring a lawsuit as the only recourse for anyone who disagrees with an agency’s self-assessment.

Marcy Abramowitz, Menlo Park, expressed her grave concerns about Federal stimulus dollars, which come with commitments to start spending on construction projects quickly. Federal dollars will bring enormous pressure to 'do it fast,' and not necessarily to 'do it right.'

Rob Herriot, Palo Alto testified that it was the route that was bad since it disrupts 53 miles of residential neighborhoods.

The Senate Budget subcommittee on transportation, which both Senators Simitian and Lowenthal are members, will vote shortly whether to release the remaining 50% of the 2009-10 budget for High Speed Rail.