The future of high-speed rail in California isn’t looking good after grant funding was slashed with the new federal budget. But with fewer options, public officials are getting creative.
Palo Alto Online reports that U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Palo Alto), state Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) and state Assemblyman Rich Gordon (D-Menlo Park) made an announcement Monday asking the High-Speed Rail Authority and the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board to consider having Caltrain and high-speed rail between San Francisco and San Jose run along the same rail line.
The theory is it will save money on infrastructure costs as well as have less of an environmental impact on neighborhoods in which the two lines are expected to run.
“Even if such a duplicative system could be constructed without adverse impact along the Caltrain corridor, and we do not believe it can, the cost of such duplication simply cannot be justified,” the trio said in a press release.
