Legislation Advanced to Release State Funding for Caltrain Electrification

As a result of a critical lawsuit that California high-speed rail opponents lost last March, a bill to release $1.1 billion in 2008 bond funds has been advanced to fund high-speed rail 'bookend' projects, particularly Caltrain electrification.

2 minute read

June 26, 2016, 7:00 AM PDT

By Irvin Dawid


Caltrain

Z.H.CHEN / Shutterstock

Juliet Williams of the Associated Press writes about new legislation critical to urban transportation improvements in southern California and the Bay Area, particularly electrification of the crowded 55-mile Caltrain commuter line that connects Silicon Valley to San Francisco. The diesel-powered line has the third highest 'ridership per mile' among commuter lines in the United States.

Last March, Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Michael Kenny ruled against Kings County and two Central Valley farmers, who claimed that the California High-Speed Rail Authority's plan violated the will of the voters in 2008 who supported the $9.95 billion bond measure (Proposition 1A) that authorized the San Francisco to Los Angeles high-speed rail project.

While the authority had sold $1.1 billion of those bonds, funds were not released due to litigation that hamstrung the authority.

An amended bill, AB 1889: High-Speed Rail Authority: high-speed train operation, written by Assemblyman Kevin Mullin (D-South San Francisco), would allow those funds to be spent on what are called 'bookend' and connectivity projects because they refer to connecting transit systems at both ends of the line. However, legislation was needed to clarify that these funds are separate and not dependent on the 800-mile line being built. 

"What we're trying to clarify is that this does serve the purpose of that but we don't have to wait for the entire corridor of high-speed rail track to be built for the money to be ready to be spent," said Mullin's legislative director, Andrew Zingale.

AB 1889 allows for $1.1 funds to be appropriated to the designated transit agencies.

"This bill would provide for the purposes of that appropriation that the approval by the authority that a corridor or usable segment thereof would be suitable and ready for high-speed train operation is conclusive," states the bill text.

The bill is in the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee having passed the Assembly in its original version that dealt with a different issue.

Other transit agencies that may receive funding from the $1.1 billion include MUNI, BART, Sacramento Regional Transit, Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, Altamont Commuter Express, Amtrak San Joaquin corridor, LA Metro, Metrolink, San Diego Trolley, and San Diego Coaster. For more information, see the authority's "High-Speed Rail Connectivity and Bookends" [PDF].

Wednesday, June 22, 2016 in Associated Press

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

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.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

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

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

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.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

Google street view image of strip mall in suburban Duncanville, Texas.

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.

3 hours ago - Parking Reform Network

Blue tarps covering tents set up by unhoused people along chain link fence on concrete sidewalk.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work

Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

5 hours ago - Next City

Aerial tram moving along cable in hilly area in Medellin, Colombia.

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.

7 hours ago - InTransition Magazine