Attention, all those on the Bay Area Peninsula who still believe that they can negotiate with the CHSRA and its CEO, Roelof Van Ark. Fuggeddaboudit!
What we have been hearing for over a year is that if we want something that the rail authority is not inclined to provide in their development plans, we, the local municipalities, will have to pay for it. This is nothing new. They've been saying this for a long time. Haven't we been listening?
That's another way of saying that not only will our tax dollars be used to build this monstrosity on the Caltrain corridor that no one actually wants there, but that we have to pay additional tax dollars to have them build it in such a way that we won't know that they are there, such as with trenching or, preferably, tunneling.
It needs to be said enough times so that people will, at least, begin to think about it. No one wants a cold bucket of reality thrown in their face, but here it is anyway.
We cannot expect any accommodation from the CHSRA. None.
But, it gets worse. Nor should we expect any assistance or support from our local elected officials, regional, or state officials. Being politicians, they are not about to engage in confrontation politics; not now, not ever. They prefer not to antagonize anyone. They prefer to make friends and thereby, voters and supporters. So, their positions tend to be ambiguous.
"Well, we don't like elevated structures, but we do like trenches and tunnels, we just don't want to pay for them. And, we are really not totally against high-speed rail. It just must be 'done right' and not harm us on the Peninsula."
My point is not that this position and attitude are either wrong or right, it's just that this position is fruitless. Our concerns are being ignored -- even as they are acknowledged -- by anyone with any authority or control over HSR in California. This is hard for us to accept. It means that we are, in effect, helpless.
Not so. We must find were the pressure points are; where there is control and authority that is inclined to agree with our position. I believe that can be found in Washington, D.C. I believe that the new Republican majority in the House, and the larger number of Republicans in the Senate will agree with us when we say that the HSR project is a boondoggle and excessive tax burden on the American taxpayers. They need to hear from us that we believe this is pork-barrel politics at its worst, and a hugely overpriced and useless luxury train we don't need.
I believe that political events will pass us by as we persist in tweaking this HSR project to our advantage. HSR, due to the ARRA stimulus funds promised to California, has too many friends in California. Most of those friends are Democrats. They have chosen to ignore the ineptness and malevolent behavior of the CHSRA in the name of seeking financial aid for our state to reduce unemployment and benefit the depressed economy. But the political winds have shifted at the national level and HSR may well be headed for a train-wreck.
Our job now is to reach those Republicans (and for many of us, it means reaching "across the aisle"). Let them know of our support for terminating HSR funding for California. We may discover that our efforts will have positive results.
"I think we need to return to common sense here and re-evaluate this whole project," Nagel said.
Terry, I certainly agree with you about that, and have been saying so for several years.
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State rail to Peninsula: Want underground tracks? Find the money
By Mike Rosenberg mrosenberg@bayareanewsgroup.com
Posted: 01/06/2011 04:23:52 AM PST
Updated: 01/06/2011 07:04:46 AM PST
Burlingame leaders say they are preparing to strike back after California's high-speed rail chief told them the state will build its tracks underground on the Peninsula only if local taxpayers foot the massive bill.
"This letter that we got from (California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO Roelof van Ark) basically says in bold words that, if we want a trench, we're going to have to pay for it," Burlingame Vice Mayor Jerry Deal said.
Van Ark sent the city the letter Dec. 28, after Mayor Terry Nagel asked him to clarify comments he reportedly made in the Gilroy area saying the state could not afford to build the tracks underground.
Van Ark said in his letter that the state has "an obligation to deliver to California citizens" a project that includes "careful considerations of the cost of each section in light of the entire system." The $43 billion project is already facing a funding shortfall of $30 billion, even before adding in potential extra costs of underground tracks on the Peninsula.
"The authority encourages these municipalities (that want below-ground tracks) to explore alternate means of funding the cost difference of placing the alignment below-grade," he wrote.
Like their counterparts in San Mateo, Belmont and several other cities along the Peninsula, Burlingame officials want their entire stretch of planned high-speed rail track buried underground along the Caltrain line. State rail planners say it would be several hundred million dollars cheaper to build aboveground tracks, which locals fear would tower 30 feet in the air, produce more noise and create a physical divide.
Nagel said Burlingame could spend the city's entire $33 million annual budget on funding the tracks and barely make a dent in the price tag.
"It's not even a possibility," Nagel said Wednesday.
The Burlingame City Council plans to consider a stronger stance against the project at its next meeting Jan. 18. The council has retained an outside attorney and may consider joining other Peninsula cities in a lawsuit against the state. It could also adopt a resolution opposing the project or take some other action.
"I think we need to return to common sense here and re-evaluate this whole project," Nagel said.
Van Ark notes in his letter that the authority has not made a decision yet on the type of tracks to be used on the Peninsula, and an environmental study of the options is not due until March. But city officials say the letter shows they have already sealed the deal on building cheaper, aboveground tracks.
"I think there are an increasing number of very clear signals that the authority has no intention of putting it underground," Councilman Michael Brownrigg said. "I just don't believe them anymore, that they're really taking this seriously."
Mike Rosenberg covers San Mateo, Burlingame, Belmont and transportation. Contact him at 650-348-4324.
