(The Associated Press circulated the following on April 9, 2010.)
SAN FRANCISCO — California’s high-speed rail authority has scrapped plans to have the San Jose to San Francisco leg of the rail line end at an underground station that was to be built at Beale Street.
Instead, the board Thursday voted in favor of an alternative proposal that would route the trains to the new Transbay Transit Center in San Francisco, which officials expect to break ground on in August.
Officials said underground construction at Beale Street could have affected the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and required the demolition of housing downtown. The station’s design also would have made it difficult to get trains in and out.
The board Thursday also agreed to run trains between San Jose and San Francisco on a route that follows the existing Caltrain system, rejecting alternatives along Highway 101 or Interstate 280.