Re:  1/29/08 City Council Grade                        Separation Study
with Atherton:                 6 p.m. council chambers.

Hon. Mayor and Councilmembers, et al:

Those who say that grade separations will come only with high speed rail are mistaken.

Capital Improvement Programs of Caltrain with Measure A sales tax funding and State PUC funding for grade separations has been on the books for decades.

Caltrain's Draft for short term improvements, which follows, states that grade separations will be built as funding is acquired.

Once again the city has failed to apply for and has refused this funding through 2010 Failure to do so is at the expense of the general public's health and safety and especially those who live adjacent to the railroad.

The Railroad Division of the Public Utilities Commission has written letters warning of the necessity for grade separations with the Derry Project, Linfield Oaks developments and others regarding the congestion and dangers at the crossings. Has council seen these?

With or without HSR Electrification will commence in 2014 with prior erection of substations and catenaries all along the line from San Francisco to San Jose. Service will again increase from 98 to 110 trains with additional expresses in the future during peak hours. Crossing arms of whatever kind will be down congesting traffic to a greater extent.

At Ravenswood between El Camino and Alma there is now so much traffic of every kind, including stretch buses from Merrill and bikes and pedestrians crossing Ravenswood without warning, suddenly stopping traffic, that vehicles are being trapped on the railroad tracks where express trains are racing by at 79 mph. Gate arms came down and damaged a car while a train raced by on the other track. There are numerous near misses.
Residents are avoiding the tracks and going down Middlefield to other cities with underpasses to shop. This pleases a minority with the philosophy that "if you build them they will come." Unfortunately, too many are already here.

Oak Grove will suffer the same consequences with the Derry Project.

In any case, the decision-making for grade separations and their design is under the auspices of the state Public Utilities Commission and the Federal Railroad Administration.

Our only hope is that suitable mitigation measures will be made for the existing railside residents, that no further housing will be built adjacent to the tracks but will be approved as TOD "within one-half mile" and that all of the energy and efforts of those opposing changes at the railroad crossings will be put to protecting the health, safety and lives of neighbors and in advancing safety for everyone.

There should be no discussions of grade separations without the railroad officials present and it is urged that you ensure that personnel from Caltrain, the PUC or the Federal Railroad Administration (there is an office in San Francisco) will be present at the Tuesday joint council meeting with Atherton.

Of course, we all know that shelved study upon study has been done in order to avoid decision-making. The time has come to stop this waste of time, energy and resources and to put all effort to protecting the health, safety and lives of everyone.  

The question is: In the meantime, will medians or four-quadrant gates as supplementary safety measures result in "quiet zones" (with application by the City) or will electrification and additional trains add to the horn blasts and air-polluting congestion? Officials are avoiding this discussion which goes to the heart of the problem of the prevailing unlivability, and dangers around the railroad tracks with planned additional housing adjacent thereto.

It is likely that it is now too late for the cities of the Peninsula to have any say in designs of under or overpasses. Isn't it now in the hands of the railroaders? Caltrain is no longer an independent entity but is part of the Regional Rail Program. With co-operation perhaps cities will have their service restored and improved. At-grade crossings of the railroad are really under the jurisdiction of the State Highway officials and funding from that agency was used in Redwood City for Jefferson and probably 5th Avenue.

Therefore, CalTRANS should be invited to discussions under way. I believe the crossings could be closed if all the heads are not put together.

Margaret Petitjean, Menlo Park

attached mail follows:

http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/PUC/hottopics/4railsafety/071707_Sec190_GradeSep.htm Received on Sat Jan 26 16:35:53 2008