Find it here: Draft SF to SJ Scoping Report (PDF). I haven't had a chance to look at this closely yet, but it apparently includes 950 letters from Peninsula NIMBYs - I love the way SFist described it:
The report includes over 950 letters from assorted cranky Peninsula NIMBYs, hippies, and Howard Jarvis looking Ayn Rand worshippers demanding that the high speed rail project be squashed underfoot like a pesky insect. That, or the rail authority should put the train in a tunnel all the way down the Peninsula from San Francisco to San Jose, because, you know, that would be like cost effective and practical and everything.
So, have a look at the document and post your thoughts in the comments. I'll have a fuller analysis on this either tonight or tomorrow.
19 comments:
My favorite tidbits:
P. 58 (of the pdf): Amtrak in its comments requested accommodation of future Coast Daylight service, described as "two round trips daily" (isn't it supposed to be one?).
P. 62: "Home Owners Against Loud Trains" made the completely sensible requests to "stop horns" and "eliminate diesel trains," plus other sound mitigation requests, all of which seem de rigueur anyway. As I asked in a previous thread, why are other groups of Peninsula residents summarily attacking the very Caltrain corridor improvements that will save lives and improve the quality of life near the corridor? You can argue against HSR while still credibly demanding safety and environmental improvements. Kudos to this group for participating productively.
P. 68: The lawsuit plaintiffs asked CHSRA to reconsider the Altamont Pass alignment.
P. 69: More specific concerns from UP.
Hopefully someone with more time and patience can comb through the comments from the cities.
950 out of how many millions living between SJ and SF? Just plain ridiculous!
Anonymous, how is 950 responses ridiculously low (as I think you're implying)? The response rate is much better than it often is for other agencies. In terms of average civic participation, Congressional offices generally count each correspondence as representing 10,000 constituents (or at least that's the DC lore I remember). If 1 out of every 10,000 residents of Santa Clara, San Mateo, and SF Counties submitted comments, there would be about 335 responses. That's being charitable, since if we counted just residents near the Caltrain corridor, the number would be much lower. So, 950 responses is pretty impressive and shows a high degree of community interest in this issue. I think we can all agree that's a positive thing.
In any case, we get the government we deserve. If the CHSRA made all the proper outreach notices through multiple media in multiple languages, and nobody showed up or submitted comments, whose fault would that be?
Many of the comments are from cities and towns, not just a person
and they are not opposed to HSR they just stated their ideas
speaking of that interactive map - you know the benefits of this project are everywhere, look, there's a travel time of 27 minutes from the san fernando valley to anaheim. any one who has ever been to LA knows that you can't even cross the street to the 7-11 in 27 minutes let alone get from the valley to the OC in 27 minutes. I can't wait to do it just to be amazed.
My favorite (pg 53): "Relocate residents during construction phase."
Although this one is pretty good too (pg 64): "HSR will increase crime"
Or maybe (pg 69): "Avoid eminent domain through tunneling"
Here's a good one;
"Allow citizens of affected counties to vote on HSR proposed, including no build." and
"Include implementation of the electrification plan and quiet zones as part of the no
project alternative."
the humane society says "Allow animals on trains."
Who in the hell do these people think they are?
A question for those of you who might know. Assuming the HSR gets built according to plan, with 4 tracks on an elevated embankmement or elevated structure or whatever. How do they plan to assure continued service of Caltrain during the construction phase? Do they plan to shut down Caltrain for the duration of the construction and replace it with some sort of bus shuttles up and down the peninsula? Does anybody know what the plan is? Or there isn't one yet? Does anybody know?
@Devil
The MOU between Caltrain and CHSRA says that there can be no interruption of service during construction, HOW they do it is a question that there probaly won't be an answer to for a while
I never knew that San Jose was accented.
I like this gem by Burlingame Councilwoman O'Mahony (p.23) - "Alignment – propose underground alignment through the entire peninsula (San Jose to
Millbrae, Millbrae through San Francisco) or elevate sufficiently to keep heavy congested
areas serene."
Define "elevate sufficiently"...
They'll build everything in sections and move things around the same way they do it when they re arrange freeway lanes, the new bay bridge for example. It not hard, there's room in the row, and it just takes a huge amount of planning and good execution.
@Andy D
Yes, that truly is a gem. I may add, isn't "to keep heavy congested
areas serene" an oxymoron?? Peninsula residents have a delusion that their unremarkable suburbs are "serene".
@Ben, I wouldn't put much stock in that MOU. It is completely unenforceable.
@Andy D
Ya, I was wondering about that myself. How is whatever occurs with HSR going to magically convert a heavily congested area into a serene one?
bwahahahhaha! This has to be my favorite of the scoping comments,
Home Owners Against
Loud Trains
January 29, 2009
Stop horns.
Design acoustical curtains and shrouds.
Receive advice from acoustical engineers to ensure best management practices are
used.
Treat vertical alignment similarly beginning in Menlo Park and continuing through Palo
Alto, Alma and Stanford.
Eliminate diesel trains.
Relocate residents during construction phase.
Financially compensate land owners if land is acquired, or tenants are lost.
Yes lets RELOCATE everybody shall we? ROFL!
YesonHSR,
the individual comments are in the appendices.
http://www.cahighspeedrail.ca.gov/library/Default.aspx?ItemID=8490
Just opening up one of those PDFs will lock up your system. This is obviously a HUGE response to an EIR, the formal document only published the "government agencies".
You don't need to relocate anybody - simply relocate the hsr to the 101 corridor. Spread the costs over a longer period as a transfer to Caltrain in San Jose will suffice in the short term.
There is no really pressing time imperative to improving inner Bay Area lines as evidenced by all the recent service cuts.
The entire emphasis should be on an San Jose to LA line via I-5 and the Grapevine. Its striking success at sustained express high speeds will ensure all the rest of the network will come on board eventually. Keep the costs as low as possible by using land adjacent to I-5 while it is still relatively cheap. Forget tunnels on the Peninsula - use the money instead to mine the Grapevine.
You already have a railroad thru the Tehachapis. You don't need another one unless you plan to use the new alignment for freight as well
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