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The California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) has directed its engineering team for the San Francisco-San Jose portion of the project to temporarily cease environmental work on the corridor until the authority receives results from a Caltrain study, according to a memo sent to CHSRA board members in advance of their July 14 meeting.

Caltrain currently is studying the feasibility of “phasing” or “blending” high-speed rail service on the peninsula with existing commuter-rail service. The agency is analyzing existing rail infrastructure to identify current capacity and any additional infrastructure that might be necessary to implement a phased or blended high-speed/commuter-rail system. Caltrain expects to complete the study by the end of the month.

In the meantime, CHSRA Chief Executive Officer Roelof van Ark has told members of the Parsons Brinckerhoff and HNTB Corp. project teams in charge of the San Francisco-San Jose sections to cease work on the project-level Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement to “reduce the possibility of unnecessary or duplicative work,” he wrote in the memo. Van Ark has directed the team to not begin any new work on the corridor until the authority resolves whether or not it plans to proceed with a phased or blended approach.