Palmdale considered for bullet train stop

This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press December 15, 2000

By MICHAEL MARESH
Valley Press Staff Writer

LANCASTER - The California High-Speed Rail Authority will study where to place stations for the proposed high speed bullet system, one of which could be in Palmdale.

Niki Tennant, spokeswoman for Los Angeles City Councilwoman Ruth Galanter, said the stations will be explored during the alignment review process and Palmdale is among the rail stops to be explored.

The Palmdale stop, according to John Barna, deputy director of the California High-Speed Rail Authority, could be either at the Palmdale Regional Airport on Avenue P and 20th Street East or the soon to be built multimodal center on the west side of Sixth Street East between Avenue Q and Technology Drive.

The group, Barna said, will look at both locations.

Galanter, the president pro-tem of the Los Angeles City Council, has been a huge proponent in making Palmdale a stop on the state's proposed bullet train. Her support of the Palmdale stop is linked with her adamant desire to develop the Palmdale Regional Airport. If a Palmdale bullet train stop is chosen, the route would move through the Antelope Valley connecting Los Angeles and Bakersfield.

At a California High-Speed Rail Authority meeting in Los Angeles Thursday, a three-year timeline was outlined in which various aspects of the planned bullet train system will be explored.

In order to come to some kind of rail stop recommendation, the California High-Speed Authority will hold town hall meetings throughout the state between January 2001 and March 2001. The input from those meetings will be put into a purpose and needs statement.

The group will work with the California Elected Woman's Association for Education and Research, which will facilitate the town hall meetings at California State University campuses throughout the state.

During the same time frame, the group will hold a scoping meeting, a public hearing of sorts, which is required by federal and state environmental law to determine what must be included in the project's Environmental Impact Report and statement.

An EIR is required by the state and an EIR statement is for federal purposes.

From now, through the public hearing period until June 2001, the group also will conduct a formal environmental review of the rail project.

"At one point, the Authority will determine what alternatives to do," Tennant said.

From there, between July 2001 and June 2002, the group will complete technical work and study power, energy and statewide strategy plans.

From July 2002 to June 2003, they will release the staff document for public review.

Tennant said the three-year detailed timeline likely will be followed by other time schedules.

Previously, the nine-member group completed and approved a plan for the 680-mile statewide bullet train system, calling for the study of two routes from Bakersfield to Los Angeles.

One of those proposals calls for a stop in Palmdale.

Opponents have said that a stop in Palmdale would add up to 15 minutes a trip, which would result in the loss of riders.

But a study funded two years ago by the city of Palmdale showed that a Valley alignment would be more cost effective and would generate millions of dollars a year in economic benefits for the Antelope Valley.

Having a high-speed rail stop in Palmdale also would offer high desert residents a 30 minute or less commuting option to Los Angeles.

David Myers, north county manager for the Greater Antelope Valley Economic Alliance, said the rail would need to hit the most populated areas.

The Southern California Association of Governments has predicted that by 2020, the population in Palmdale and Lancaster will increase to about 1.2 million residents.

"We think it is premature for (the California High-Speed Rail Authority) to say the Gorman alignment will save time," Myers said.

Barna said it is possible both locations could be included.

"We will analyze what it takes to go to the Antelope Valley or Gorman," he said. "We will look at doing both."

Myers said of the Gorman and Palmdale routes the Antelope Valley would have fewer environmental concerns.

Myers added that Palmdale would have much less displaced housing than Gorman if the rail was to come to the Valley. He also said Palmdale with few tunnels and bridges, would be better equipped if an earthquake were to hit, noting that trains could be knocked off lines during natural disasters.

Barna said the group still needs to identify the environmental concerns.

Palmdale Mayor Jim Ledford said once the environmental work is done, it will show Palmdale is the superior alignment over Gorman.

"It's an ongoing effort (eight years)," Ledford said. "Based on our research, the Antelope Valley alignment is superior for Southern California."

In another matter, Myers said studies have shown that the economic impacts would be huge. Gorman, he added, may not want the growth in order to keep its area pristine.

If the project ever comes to fruition, the cost for the rail, which can reach speeds exceeding 200 miles per hour, would be between $23 billion and $30 billion with the project being finished in 2017.

That price tag, Myers said, has to be paid by somebody - most likely taxpayers. A quarter-cent sales tax would be imposed on California residents, though that would need to be voted on by them.

"Whoever builds this system is going to have to make a philosophical choice on whether this will be a rich man's mode of transportation or (something for all residents)," he said.

If it is not for all residents, Myers said, the ballot measure would likely fail.