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San Rafael: Start for SMART unclear
Author: The Odd Duck
Date: 09-22-2016 - 13:48
San Rafael: Start for SMART unclear
Testing of commuter trains and tracks between Marin and Sonoma counties continues virtually nonstop, but rail officials remain reticent about a start date for service.
Once up and running, passengers will be able to ride from the Santa Rosa Airport to downtown San Rafael with stops in between, along 43 miles of tracks.
SMART officials have said service would start by the end of the year, but have not yet determined a beginning date for service.
December has been mentioned, but there are no guarantees.
“Not until it is 100 percent safe,” Farhad Mansourian, general manager of the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit rail line, said earlier this week, when queried about the launch. “It can’t be just 99.9 percent safe.”
During a review of operations to date presented to the rail board Wednesday, Mansourian said more testing needs to be done to prepare the service for the public.
“We will do that for weeks, if not months, until everything is perfect,” Mansourian said.
SMART officials said Wednesday the Federal Railroad Administration is unlikely to allow SMART to begin operations until it is fully complete. The agency granted waivers to new rail operations in Denver to the city’s airport to allow that system to begin rolling early in April, but it has been fraught with problems since opening.
That 23-mile line has been plagued by a series of shutdowns over the past several months largely caused by lightning strikes or other sudden electrical power losses. Those shutdowns have led to some passengers missing flights or having to pay extra to take a taxi or other transportation option to the airport.
One agency that is working with SMART is planning for a December launch. Golden Gate Bridge officials on Thursday will look to implement shuttle service from the train stop at the San Rafael Transit Center to the Larkspur Ferry Terminal.
The rail service includes an extension to Larkspur, but it won’t be ready until 2018. Until the extension opens, SMART wants to provide a connection to the Larkspur Ferry for rail passengers who get off in San Rafael.
SMART will pick up the cost for the weekend shuttle at $80,000, with the bridge district taking on the $333,000 cost for weekday service as a nine-month pilot project. If SMART is not ready to roll by December, the start of shuttle service would be delayed, bridge officials said.
The North Bay has waited eight years for the train. In November 2008, voters approved Measure Q, which increased the sales tax by a quarter-cent in Marin and Sonoma counties for 20 years to help pay for the project.
Construction of the 70-mile rail line was scheduled to occur between 2011 and 2014. An adjacent bike and pedestrian path will also be built, but over a longer period. A slow-down in the economy right after the vote slowed progress and prompted rail officials to build the project in phases. Money issues also prompted the delay. Now dozens of new rail employees are working to finish the job.
“There is so much work and effort to get us ready for passenger service,” said Jeanne Belding, SMART spokeswoman.
IJ wire services contributed to this report.
Testing of commuter trains and tracks between Marin and Sonoma counties continues virtually nonstop, but rail officials remain reticent about a start date for service.
Once up and running, passengers will be able to ride from the Santa Rosa Airport to downtown San Rafael with stops in between, along 43 miles of tracks.
SMART officials have said service would start by the end of the year, but have not yet determined a beginning date for service.
December has been mentioned, but there are no guarantees.
“Not until it is 100 percent safe,” Farhad Mansourian, general manager of the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit rail line, said earlier this week, when queried about the launch. “It can’t be just 99.9 percent safe.”
During a review of operations to date presented to the rail board Wednesday, Mansourian said more testing needs to be done to prepare the service for the public.
“We will do that for weeks, if not months, until everything is perfect,” Mansourian said.
SMART officials said Wednesday the Federal Railroad Administration is unlikely to allow SMART to begin operations until it is fully complete. The agency granted waivers to new rail operations in Denver to the city’s airport to allow that system to begin rolling early in April, but it has been fraught with problems since opening.
That 23-mile line has been plagued by a series of shutdowns over the past several months largely caused by lightning strikes or other sudden electrical power losses. Those shutdowns have led to some passengers missing flights or having to pay extra to take a taxi or other transportation option to the airport.
One agency that is working with SMART is planning for a December launch. Golden Gate Bridge officials on Thursday will look to implement shuttle service from the train stop at the San Rafael Transit Center to the Larkspur Ferry Terminal.
The rail service includes an extension to Larkspur, but it won’t be ready until 2018. Until the extension opens, SMART wants to provide a connection to the Larkspur Ferry for rail passengers who get off in San Rafael.
SMART will pick up the cost for the weekend shuttle at $80,000, with the bridge district taking on the $333,000 cost for weekday service as a nine-month pilot project. If SMART is not ready to roll by December, the start of shuttle service would be delayed, bridge officials said.
The North Bay has waited eight years for the train. In November 2008, voters approved Measure Q, which increased the sales tax by a quarter-cent in Marin and Sonoma counties for 20 years to help pay for the project.
Construction of the 70-mile rail line was scheduled to occur between 2011 and 2014. An adjacent bike and pedestrian path will also be built, but over a longer period. A slow-down in the economy right after the vote slowed progress and prompted rail officials to build the project in phases. Money issues also prompted the delay. Now dozens of new rail employees are working to finish the job.
“There is so much work and effort to get us ready for passenger service,” said Jeanne Belding, SMART spokeswoman.
IJ wire services contributed to this report.
San Rafael: Start for SMART unclear