California Governor Gives State More Control in Addressing Issues on LOSSAN Corridor
Written by David C. Lester, Editor-in-Chief
Amtrak Pacific Surfliner along the coast of southern California. Photo courtesy of Amtrak.
SACRAMENTO –– The ongoing challenges with the LOSSAN Corridor, the 351-mile stretch of railroad running from San Luis Obispo to San Diego, are going to see increased attention from the state's Secretary of Transportation.
The Orange County Register reported that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation giving the state Department of Transportation more authority in managing efforts to remediate the troubled LOSSAN Corridor, much of which runs along the California coast and has suffered from geologic changes, erosion, and landslides for years, sometimes eliminating rail service for months. The corridor not only serves Amtrak’s premier Surfliner trains but also commuter trains of different agencies and freight trains of Union Pacific and BNSF. In addition, the corridor is the only rail line that connects San Diego to the nation’s rail system.
A challenge with achieving sustained and meaningful improvement in the corridor’s problems has been the number of government agencies involved in managing the problems. There are multiple municipalities up and down the corridor that focus only on the area of their jurisdiction and, for the most part, each handling the repair of the line they’re responsible for without much coordinated effort to address the entirety of the problem.
According to the Register, “The bill grants power to the state’s transportation secretary to ‘lead all necessary coordination, collaboration and intervention when necessary’ among the nearly one dozen organizations that have a stake in the LOSSAN rail corridor, including railroad owners, transit agencies, planning agencies, and freight operators.'”
You can download and read the bill below.
Even though she only represents the 38th District, which comprises southern Orange County and northern San Diego County, State Senator Catherine Blakespear (D-38) has been the spark plug behind efforts to coordinate agency work along the corridor and authored this bill.
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