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1/28/2020
[Editor's note: This article was updated Jan. 29 to clarify that LA Metro will be presenting updated project information to the public, not seeking public input, as was previously stated.]The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) is presenting updated project information on three light-rail alternatives the agency is evaluating as part of the Eastside Transit Corridor Phase 2 project that will extend the Gold Line.
Next month, LA Metro will host meetings in East LA, Rosemead and Montebello, California, to present information on possible light-rail routes, LA Metro officials said in a press release.
The first alternative follows the southern edge of State Route 60 from the current Gold Line terminus at Pomona and Atlantic boulevards and continues to Peck Road in South El Monte. A short light-rail segment would shift to the north side of the freeway between Greenwood Avenue and Paramount Boulevard.
The second route would be built along Atlantic Boulevard in an underground segment between the current Gold Line terminus and the Citadel Outlets in Commerce. The route would then proceed east along Washington Boulevard via aerial and at-grade alignments ending at Lambert Road in Whittier.
The final route option would combine the first two alternatives by building out both the State Route 60 and Washington Boulevard alternatives.
LA Metro is also evaluating an initial operable segment (IOS) approach which would allow the agency to start project construction in the near-term with ultimate buildout of the project based on available funding. Any IOS must be able to operate as a stand-alone system and include a maintenance and storage facility, agency officials said.
A supplemental draft environmental statement on the alternatives is anticipated to be available for public review in mid-year.
The project will be funded by $6 billion in Measure M funds, scheduled in two cycles. The first cycle allocates $3 billion in 2029 and the second cycle allocates $3 billion in 2053.
If funds can be identified and secured as part of LA Metro’s Twenty-Eight by ’28 Initiative to build 28 projects before the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympics, the LA Metro's board will direct staff to explore accelerating the project schedule, officials said.