The editorial board of The Sacramento Bee was pleased with the new business plan of the HSR Authority, especially its new focus on improving commuter rail, while its premier columnist, Dan Walters, continues to see the project as unnecessary.
The High Speed Rail Authority released their long-awaited new business plan on Nov. 1 to a skeptical crowd at the Sacramento Rail Museum. But the increased costs, revised time-line, and new focus on improving commuter rail on shared tracks won the praise of many, including skeptics, who continue to have doubts.
"The latest business plan from the California High-Speed Rail Authority will not change the minds of long-time critics – there's still too much unknown about this major infrastructure project that will take decades to complete. But it should provide comfort to those who do believe that rail should be a part of California's 21st-century transportation network.
The new plan is much more explicit about tying the system together with existing commuter and intercity rail systems, promising "connections at all new high-speed rail stations to existing regional and local transit systems." In particular, the new plan calls for getting spending under way quickly using $950 million set aside by voters in Proposition 1A for regional and local rail improvements."
From Dan Walters: High-speed California choo-choo slows down: "Whether a 200-mph bullet train is a rational approach to California's transportation issues is still problematic, since local rush- hour congestion is the biggest problem. But at least the newly revised plan scales back the pie-in-the-sky ridership figures that the CHSRA was peddling, but no one was buying."
From Sacramento Bee: California's high-speed rail backers take steps to quiet critics: The revised figures drew praise from a key legislator.
"Sen. Alan Lowenthal, the Long Beach Democrat who chairs the Senate select committee on high-speed rail, said the regional approach is a "major step forward" for the agency."
"I think up until now we've been on kind of a collision course, the Legislature and the High-Speed Rail Authority, because I don't think the High-Speed Rail Authority felt any reason to have to respond to any of our issues unless they were forced to do it," Lowenthal said. "At least now I think there's an attitude of trying to work with us. We will see what that translates into, but I think it's a great first step."
Thanks to One Bay Area
FULL STORY: Editorial: Realistic plan for high-speed rail requires patience

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall
A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work
Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle
Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont