Report: SacRT Board Approves New Light Rail Station
Written by Carolina Worrell, Senior Editor, Railway Age
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) Board of Directors on Jan. 8 voted to approve a new light rail station for the Dos Rios area of Sacramento, near Marisol Village, an affordable housing community, according to a report by KCRA 3.
According to the report, the light rail station will be built off North 12th Street, between Richards Boulevard and Sproule Avenue. Light rail already runs through the area, but there is currently no station.
According to the KCRA 3 report, SacRT board members originally voted against the proposal in November, “citing funding concerns even though grant money was available.”
“In the time since that grant was approved, we found more contamination in the ground than we thought, costs went up during COVID and the project costs just ballooned beyond what the grant would cover,” said Katie Valenzuela, a SacRT board member and Sacramento City Council member. “So, the real issue at play was whether or not we were going to use stat resources allocated to RT to help pay for that gap.”
During Monday’s presentation, KCRA 3 reports, budgetary changes to the project were laid out. According to the new numbers, there are around $33 million in possible funds to go toward the project, with additional money projected to come from “a variety of sources,” Valenzuela said.
“There was state budget money that came through SACOG that we were able to full down, also Congresswoman [Doris] Matsui was able to pull down a congressional allocation, and there are other grants and RT resources they were able to free up,” Valenzuela said. “They also spent a lot of time reducing the costs of the project by doing value engineering like changing the fencing, moving things around.”
While there is still some funding that needs to be found to cover the cost of the whole project, Valenzuela said the SacRT board will “make it work,” according to the report.
“RT is basically committing to move forward and figuring that out either through other resources or future grant opportunities,” Valenzuela said.
According to the KCRA 3 report, the SacRT board voted 11 to 1 to approve the light rail station. The one “no” vote was from board member and Citrus Heights Vice Mayor Bret Daniels, who said “building a light rail station in the Dos Rios area does not make sense financially because the light rail stations closest to it are not too far away.” He also pointed out other modes of transportation that could be used, according to the report.
“We’re going to spend approximately $43 million so that somebody doesn’t have to ride in a bus for one mile, which would take three minutes. It’s a terrible slap in the face to taxpayers, I think,” said Daniels, who added that “other communities within the Sacramento region that are located even farther away from light rail stations would benefit from new stations in their areas.”
However, KCRA 3 reports, residents of Marisol Village said they are “happy the new light rail station is moving forward.”
“Diversity, equity and inclusion. That’s what the Dos Rios Light Rail Station is providing for the community at large and for the residents specifically,” said Marisol Village resident Kesha Harris. “Transportation, reliable transportation, for me, would absolutely change my life.”
According to the KCRA 3 report, Valenzuela said due to the original grant, “there is a strict timeline for the project,” and she expects construction on the new light rail station to begin this year with hopes of it opening in 2025.
