(The following article by Dana Yates was posted on the San Mateo Daily Journal website on May 3.)
SAN MATEO, Calif. — A plan to electrify Caltrain and introduce technology only seen in Europe and the East Coast is getting mixed reviews from Peninsula riders.
About 60 people gathered at Caltrain headquarters in San Carlos Saturday to hear the details of a $602 million plan to electrify its entire line from San Francisco to Gilroy. The project would decrease noise and pollution while cutting up to 15 minutes from travel time. However, some opponents argue the expensive upgrade isn’t a cost-effective way to improve ridership and that unsightly wires threaten scenic views along the Peninsula.
“Don’t spend half a billion dollars to put ugliness up and down the Peninsula,” said Bob Olton, a Belmont resident representing “a group of Caltrain riders.”
The current Caltrain schedule calls for construction to begin in 2008 with completion “by the end of the decade,” said Project Manager Carol Wolf.
The transformation would require overhead wires to run the entire length of the tracks, supported by hinged bracket arms reaching out over the tracks from steel poles. In cases where there are more than two tracks, steel frames or multi-wire headspans would be needed to support the wires. The proposed wires were not welcomed by some who say too much hard work has gone into keeping historical trains stations — such as Burlingame — free from unsightly additions.
Others said the unsightly lines would hamper the view from their homes located near train tracks. Caltrain would have to remove trees and overgrowth to make room for the additional equipment, said Pat Gelb, environmental team leader for the project.
In a more wide-reaching complaint, Olton argued that the cost of electrifying the trains wouldn’t increase ridership enough to support the high costs. Instead, he suggested Caltrain use a fraction of the money to expand its schedule and coverage area.
The money, however, is allocated by a number of different state, federal and local agencies for this specific project. The main motivation for undertaking such a big project is to increase federal funding to Caltrain by reducing air pollution, Wolf said.
Although the money is already allocated, it shouldn’t be considered cash in hand yet. Wolf said it is still “a big challenge” for Caltrain to make sure all the money continues to be earmarked for the project.
The electric trains would run on power generated at three major substations along the transit corridor in South San Francisco, San Jose and Gilroy. The size of each substation would be about 115 feet by 200 feet. Two smaller switching stations and eight parallel stations would be added throughout the line, Gelb said.
The electrification would significantly reduce air pollution by reducing diesel exhaust currently generated by trains. It would also attract an estimated additional 4,120 riders a day and reduce car travel time on local freeways by 86,000 miles. Ride times would be reduced by two to 15 minutes.
The benefits are all good news to a number of people at the meeting who said they waited a long time for cleaner trains in the Bay Area.
“It’s like having a neighbor with a smoking 1970 jalopy next door. It’s time to upgrade,” said a representative from the Sierra Club in support of the plan. “It’s high time we bring this train up to the 20th century — even though we’re well past that.”
East Coast trains have been running on electric power since the turn of the century. New Jersey plans on implementing two-level passenger cars to their electric system sometime this year, said Mike Lewis, an engineer with The Parsons Corporation.
Aside from New Jersey, the Peninsula would be the only place in the United States to operate electric, two-tier cars. Similar cars are being run in a number of European cities, including Paris. Lewis said the West Coast’s rail system is underdeveloped because the invention of the car near the turn of the century outdated mass transportation.