California panel OKs $2 billion in transportation, rail improvement projects

The California Transportation Commission (CTC) has approved more than $2 billion in funding for hundreds of transportation infrastructure, rail and local projects, the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) announced last week.

More than $690 million of the monies will be funded entirely or in part by Senate Bill 1, legislation that calls for the state to spend $54 billion to fix roads, freeways and bridges across California and puts more dollars toward transit and safety.

"These projects are just a small portion of the key improvements we need to maintain California's critical transportation infrastructure," said Caltrans Director Laurie Berman in a press release.

Included in the funding are locally administered State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) rail projects, such as:
• Nearly $27 million for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to procure eight new zero-emission light-rail vehicles;
• $21 million toward construction of rail extensions to Larkspur and Windsor;
• $3 million toward electrification along the Peninsula Corridor;
• $3 million for 1.8 miles of new siding track and relocation of existing spur track on the Pacific Surfliner Corridor;
• $2 million toward the effort to increase rail service to Roseville; and
• nearly $1.2 million toward the San Onofre to Pulgas track Phase 2, which involves construction of 1.6 miles of additional second main track capacity adjacent to the main track, including new bridges, along the Los Angeles-San Diego-San Luis Obispo Rail Corridor.