OCTA Weekly Update: High Speed Rail open house meeting, Metrolink construction, bus meetings
Submitted by Steven on 24 January, 2010 - 1:01am
I (the Steve) helped Ted Nguyen at OCTA out with some photographs from the California High Speed Rail Los Angeles-Anaheim segment meeting, a packed auditorium well-attended by 150 or so folks whom, I noticed, were at least 40 years of age and above. Anyways, I'll write tomorrow more on it.
Below is pasted a copy of OCTA's latest Weekly Update newsletter. The most interesting part of the newsletter is this:
Policy Committee to Meet about Major Investment Study
Thursday, Jan. 28 – The Central County Corridor Major Investment Policy Advisory Committee meeting will take place at OCTA headquarters in conference room 103 / 104 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Contact Fernando Chavarria at (714) 560-5306 or fchavarria@octa.net.
If you recall, this is the proposal to extend the 57 freeway underneath the Santa Ana River, or even operate light rail/buses near the river. I think anyone interested in future of Orange County's transit should attend this meeting.
Director Curt Pringle, also the mayor of Anaheim and chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, shares project information at the first Southern California open house in Anaheim. View more pictures from the open house here. Photos courtesy of Steven Chan.
Residents Share Comments on Planned More than 150 Orange County residents flocked to the Southern California’s first high-speed rail community open house Wednesday night in Anaheim. Community members offered feedback on the much-anticipated project to staff members from OCTA and the California High-Speed Rail Authority about the Anaheim to Los Angeles section of the project at the community meeting at Anaheim City Hall. OCTA Director Curt Pringle, also mayor of Anaheim and chairman of CHSRA, joined the project team to share information on options for proposed routes and station locations that will be considered during the project’s environmental review. Planners will release the draft of the environmental review in late spring or early summer of 2010 for public review and comments. Community members shared comments about mitigation, noise and property impacts, funding and construction for the high-speed rail project during the open house. Other topics discussed included job creation and the impact on current bus and rail systems. For more transportation updates, visit OCTA’s YouTube channel.
“I would very much like to see high-speed rail come to California, so I wanted to come out and support it tonight,” said Jill Jacobs of Irvine. “I am more optimistic after hearing this meeting that it will actually happen.” Approved by voters in November 2008, California's high-speed rail system will zip passengers from Anaheim to San Francisco in less than three hours. Experts concur that because of Orange County's early planning work, the Anaheim to Los Angeles segment of high-speed rail will be the first under construction. High-speed trains will take riders from Anaheim to Los Angeles in just 20 minutes, rather than the nearly one-hour current Metrolink train trip. Initial plans call for the Anaheim to Los Angeles high-speed rail corridor to travel along the existing LOSSAN (Los Angeles-San Luis Obispo-San Diego) Rail Corridor. High-speed trains will travel between the future Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC) and Union Station in downtown Los Angeles. The Anaheim open house is the first of several planned regional community meetings this spring. Transportation Chiefs Discuss Regional Issues CEO Will Kempton attended the monthly transportation meeting of regional transportation authorities and commissions in Los Angeles last week. Representatives from the San Pedro Bay Ports, the Alameda Corridor East Construction Authority, the Alameda Corridor, the South Coast Air Quality Management District and the Southern California Association of Governments gathered to discuss important transportation topics. Held monthly, the meeting’s agenda focused on comments from Business, Transportation and Housing Agency Secretary Dale Bonner on the state’s public-private partnership program, impacts on transit services based on the elimination of transit assistance funds in the governor’s budget and recent developments regarding the implementation of SB 375. Citizens Advisory Committee Members The Citizens Advisory Committee met on Tuesday afternoon in the midst of a rainstorm and tornado watch. Nearly 20 members along with Director Greg Winterbottom battled the elements to come to the meeting where they reviewed the status of the state budget and discussed the development of OCTA’s Long Range Transportation Plan and outreach efforts. Committee members selected the theme for the outreach program: Direction 2035 – Moving Toward a Greener Tomorrow. Will Kempton also introduced an item on the I-405 improvement options and the concept of toll lanes as a possible way to fund some of the improvements. New member recruitment efforts will begin next month as the terms of half of the members expire. This Week’s Storm Impacts Rail Construction Schedule 
Due to weather conditions, scheduled construction for Metrolink has been tentatively postponed to Jan. 31.
OCTA and Metrolink’s scheduled work on the tracks have been cancelled because of the week’s heavy rains. The construction work is part of the countywide effort to expand rail service and to enhance rail safety in Orange County. Due to weather conditions, schedule changes for Metrolink service for Sunday, Jan. 24, have been cancelled. Amtrak and Metrolink will operate normal train service on this day. The construction work has been tentatively postponed until Sunday, Jan. 31. The construction work will prohibit trains from operating south of the Irvine Metrolink Station. “Although this temporary closure will result in inconvenience for many of our riders it is required for the future expansion of service in Orange County,” Director Art Brown said. “This will result in more convenient service that will benefit all our riders.” For the weekend of Jan. 30, all Inland Empire-Orange County Line service on Sunday (trains 857, 858, 859 and 860) will be canceled that day. Inland Empire-Orange County Line Orange County Line CEO Nearly Finishes Introductions to City Councils CEO Will Kempton visited the cities of Brea, Fullerton and Laguna Woods this week to introduce himself to elected officials and community members as OCTA’s new CEO. Kempton has visited 33 cities since he became CEO in August, and hopes to complete his tour of all 34 Orange County cities by the end of January. 
Staff Outreach to Inform Bus Customers about March Service Change Monday, Jan. 25 – OCTA’s marketing outreach team members will attend college and university campuses around the county to communicate the upcoming changes to OCTA’s fixed-route bus service in March. OCTA will host an information booth as well as canvas bus stops that serve each campus and provide students with details about how bus routes will be changing and the alternatives that are available. Contact Judy Leon at (714) 560-5358 or jleon@octa.net. Vice Chairman Bates to Discuss OCTA Update with Sierra Sage Group Monday , Jan. 25 – Vice Chairman Pat Bates will present an update on OCTA activities to the Sierra Sage Group. The discussion will focus on freeway improvements in south Orange County and the expansion of rail service, including Go Local and high-speed rail. Contact Laura Scheper at (714) 560-5697 orlscheper@octa.net. OCTA Honors Employee of the Year Tuesday, Jan. 26 – OCTA will honor the employee of the year at the St. Joseph Conference Center, 480 S. Batavia, Orange, at 1:30 p.m. Contact Liz Fellows at (714) 560-5861 or at efellows@octa.net. Will Kempton to Address Financial Thursday, Jan. 28 – CEO Will Kempton is participating in a series on financing California’s transportation systems that will address the financial challenges agencies are facing and actions being taken. Kempton will focus on the current situation facing OCTA and the outlook for the future with an eye toward calling attention to the plight of transit operators statewide. The event will be attended by state legislators staff, academics and state agency professionals. Contact Laura Scheper at (714) 560-5697 or lscheper@octa.net. Chairman Amante to Participate in Thursday, Jan. 28 – Chairman Jerry Amante will participate in a panel at the Four Corners Economic and Transportation Summit. The panel will discuss the status of initiatives being undertaken by the, Orange, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. Lucy Dunn, member of the California Transportation Commission and director of the Orange County Business Council, and Deborah Barmack, director of the San Bernardino Association of Governments, also will participate on the panel. Contact Laura Scheper at (714) 560-5697 or lscheper@octa.net. Policy Committee to Meet about Major Investment Study Thursday, Jan. 28 – The Central County Corridor Major Investment Policy Advisory Committee meeting will take place at OCTA headquarters in conference room 103 / 104 from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Contact Fernando Chavarria at (714) 560-5306 or fchavarria@octa.net. OCTA and Orange County Council of Governments Discuss Transportation Planning Wednesday, Feb. 3 – OCTA and the Orange County Council of Governments will host Orange County’s Regional Target Setting workshop at the First American Title Insurance Company, 2 First American Way, Santa Ana, from 9 a.m. to noon. This workshop provides the opportunity for participants to express their preferences about local and regional transportation planning. Contact Dave Simpson at (714) 560-5570 or dsimpson@octa.net. OCTA to Host Southern California Transit Forum  Friday, Feb. 5 – OCTA, the office of Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez, Chapman University, Teamsters Local 952, Mobility 21, the Orange County Division of the League of California Cities and other transportation organizations will host the Southern California Transit Forum at Chapman University, 333 N. Glassell St., Orange, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Orange County Business Council will host the closing reception is from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Among others, transit forum participants will include: Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez, State Sen. Alan Lowenthal; Assemblyman Jose Solorio; Curt Pringle, mayor of Anaheim and chairman of the California High-Speed Rail Authority; Will Kempton, CEO of OCTA; Arthur T. Leahy, CEO of Metro; Lucy Dunn, California Transportation Commissioner and CEO of the Orange County Business Council; James Earp, California Transportation Commissioner and executive director of the Los Angeles Alliance for Jobs; Hasan Ikhrata, CEO of the Southern California Association of Governments; Patrick D. Kelly, secretary-treasurer and executive officer of Teamsters Local 952; Art Guzzetti, vice president of policy for the American Public Transportation Association; Timothy Canova, associate dean of the Chapman University Law School; and Josh Shaw, executive director of the California Transit Association. The forum is a gathering place for transit agency officials and transit-focused leaders. It offers opportunities to share views on addressing critical transit funding challenges and positioning transit for future success in Southern California. Contact Peggy Wandelear at (714) 560-5939 or pwandelear@octa.net. 
Jan. 15 – The ABC-7 News aired a story about train service into Union Station being suspended because of a possible structural problem with the Cesar Chavez Avenue underpass at the north end of the station. Jan. 15 – The Orange County Register wrote an article about a 21-year-old man arrested on suspicion of drunken driving following a crash with a sedan and an OCTA bus that left 10 people injured. 
Due to major cuts in state funding and significant drops in sales tax revenue and fare revenue the OCTA voted to eliminate 150,000 bus service hours including Night Owl service on routes 43, 50, 57 and 60 beginning in March.
Jan. 15 – The OC Weekly included a story about the reduction of Night Owl service, which will go into effect with the March bus service change. Jan. 18 – The Los Angeles Times ran an article about Caltrans seeking inexpensive alternatives to reduce congestion and accidents on Southern California freeways. Jan. 18 & Jan. 19 – The Orange County Register included various articles about the Anaheim City Council meeting to discuss several long-range redevelopment projects. Jan. 18 – The Orange County Registerpublished an article about the Laguna Beach City Council hosting a meeting to give residents a chance to share their comments on recent road construction on Pacific Coast Highway. Jan. 19 – The Orange County Register published an article that included 2009 job loss numbers in the Orange County. 
Despite the heavy rain Southern California has experienced in the last week, construction on the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) project has not been delayed. The project will widen I-5 from three to five lanes in each direction between the Los Angeles County line and the Riverside Freeway (SR-91).
Jan. 20 – The Orange County Register wrote a story about how the rain has not affected construction progress along the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5). Jan. 20 – The Orange County Register posted an article about the city of Anaheim seeking the public’s opinion on plans to build a high-speed rail line from Anaheim to L.A. and eventually to San Francisco and beyond. Jan. 21 – The Orange County Register included an article about the High Speed Rail Authority's first community public hearing on plans to build a high-speed rail line between Anaheim and San Francisco.
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Comments
Light rail or a busway along
Light rail or a busway along the Santa Ana River would be fine as long as the majority of stations are not there. They have to find some way to get the stations and the tracks into the places people are actually going.