Deadline met, mostly, for Colton Crossing agreement
Written by jrood
San Bernardino County, Calif., transportation officials met a state deadline May 7 to keep a $202-million railroad overpass project on track, according to officials who negotiated the hastily finalized deal, The Press-Enterprise reports.
The Colton Crossing will
separate the Union Pacific and BNSF tracks where they cross in a residential
neighborhood in Colton, south of Interstate 10. The Union Pacific tracks will
be raised via an overpass atop the BNSF line, eliminating a freight bottleneck
that has contributed to pollution and led to delays in getting goods moving in
and out of Southern California.
More than $125 million in
state and federal money is dedicated to the project, but the funding hinges on
local agreements submitted Friday to the California Transportation Commission.
Those agreements need to demonstrate that drivers and Colton residents are
getting something out of the project too, such as more commuter train service
and fewer delays at railroad tracks, officials have said.
Though some minor details
remain unresolved before everything is a done deal, officials said they are
confident they have salvaged a project once thought to be on the verge of
collapse after state officials balked at an earlier plan.
"If you ask me my
personal opinion, I think we’re there," said Garry Cohoe, director of
freeway programs for San Bernardino Associated Governments. "I don’t see
any showstoppers."
Two agreements — one
between the railroads and SANBAG and Colton officials, and the other between
transportation officials in Southern California — are required so state and
federal money can flow to the project, which is expected to start construction
next year.
Federal officials need,
by May 17, an explanation of how the project is funded in order for it to
receive $33.8 million in federal stimulus funds. State officials must approve
the agreements between the railroads and transportation agencies to award $91
million in state bond funds.
State transportation
commissioners meet May 19 and 20 in Sacramento, and can approve the deal after
specifics are turned over to federal officials. Commission staff told SANBAG to
have all components of the deal to them by Friday so they could be reviewed,
said Annette Gilbertson, associate deputy director of the state transportation
commission.
SANBAG is still working
with transportation officials in Southern California to sign off on the deal.
The Southern California Consensus Group, composed of transportation officials
in Riverside, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties and the
San Pedro Bay ports, must approve the Colton Crossing deal as well.
To work with regional
transportation officials, the agreement between SANBAG and the railroads
includes Union Pacific ceding ownership of some land in Los Angeles County,
where a subway extension is planned.
A signed letter from the
consensus group isn’t expected until next week, Cohoe said. He said state
officials gave the consensus group until May 14 to deliver the signed
agreement.
Gilbertson said she was
unaware of any extension of the deadline. Officials were expecting all of the
documents — including the consensus letter – May 7.
No one wanted to see the
project killed, said many involved in the process, but for years state and
local officials have questioned how much the railroad overpass would benefit
drivers. The state transportation commission in March rejected an earlier
attempt at a deal, saying the public wasn’t getting enough bang for its
significant bucks. The commission told local and railroad officials to find a
way to add enticements for drivers and residents.
A key component was getting
the railroads to allow for more Metrolink commuter train service along Union
Pacific and BNSF tracks, said John Standiford, deputy director of the Riverside
County Transportation Commission.
The railroads and San
Bernardino agreed to a series of improvements near the Colton Crossing to
reduce vehicle delays at train tracks and to build a quiet zone where the
trains do not have to blow their horns.
