(The following editorial appeared on the Merced Sun-Star website on November 18, 2009.)
MERCED, Calif. — The train is leaving the station for federal stimulus funds and, once again, it appears that California commuter rail will be taking up the rear.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger decided last month that, in the current round of federal funding, the state would seek money only for the high-speed bullet train slated to link San Diego to San Francisco.
The Governor’s Office contends that high-speed rail stood the best chance of receiving federal stimulus money in this current round.
That may be so, but it is also debatable. What is known is that local agencies, particularly those in Southern California, worked with state officials on what was supposed to be a “unified proposal” that they thought would fund both existing commuter rail and other rail projects around the state.
Late in the process, the governor quashed funding requests from local governments and told state officials to seek $4.7 billion in stimulus funds solely for the bullet train, according to the Los Angeles Times.
That decision has angered supporters of commuter rail, who might otherwise have applied for the stimulus funds without going through the state process.
High-speed rail holds much potential in this state. So does commuter rail. The phenomenal growth of Capitol Corridor, which links the Sacramento region to the Bay Area, is just one example of how existing rail lines can help improve mobility and create alternatives to clogged freeways.
The San Joaquin Line has been providing reliable Amtrak service by bus from points south to Bakersfield, then train service to Fresno, Madera, Merced, Modesto and Stockton for many years.
As it gains momentum, however, there’s a strong potential for high-speed rail to suck resources away from existing rail lines. That would be a shame, because high-speed rail is still many years away, and in the meantime we still need our commuter lines.
In the current case, Southern California transit officials are urgently seeking money to increase capacity and improve safety between Los Angeles and San Diego. In particular, they were seeking $170 million for a special computer-guided braking system on trains that might help them avoid crashes like the one that killed 25 people in Los Angeles last year.
The Governor’s Office claims that such projects, while worthy, would have hurt the state’s chance of receiving stimulus money in this funding round.
If that’s the case, the governor should lobby President Barack Obama to change the criteria for awarding stimulus funds. Adding special brakes to existing trains would certainly create jobs immediately and it quite possibly would save lives. It’s hard to make the same argument for a high-speed rail system many years in the future.