CalSTA: $690MM for Public Transportation Projects

CalSTA announced a $46 million state grant for VTA's East San Jose Light Rail Extension.

The California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) on April 24 announced an award of more than $690 million to 28 new public transportation projects in disadvantaged communities to “close out the first wave of a historic infusion of state funding to expand transit and passenger rail service throughout the state, helping to cut planet-warming pollution.”

According to CalSTA, the funding announcement is part of a larger, multiyear, multibillion-dollar investment to “upgrade the state’s transit system to support equity, enhance mobility options, improve service and reduce overdependence on driving.” The grants, which are administered by CalSTA as part of the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), follow $2.54 billion in January for a total state investment of more than $3.2 billion in public transportation in just the first four months of 2023.

With a total budget of more than $2.63 billion consisting of federal, state and local funding, the 28 projects, CalSTA says, will directly benefit disadvantaged communities and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by an estimated two million metric tons—the equivalent of taking more than 445,000 gas-powered cars off the road.

Projects receiving funding come from all regions of the state—from Humboldt, Sacramento, Santa Cruz and various Bay Area counties in the north to Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties in the south—and will result in the purchase of 277 new zero-emission vehicles statewide and the development of several high-priority mobility hubs and rail projects, according to CalSTA.

Projects receiving funding include:

• $100 million for North County Transit District (NCTD), in coordination with the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), to deliver the San Dieguito Bridge Replacement, Double Track, and Special Events Platform Project. This will replace a substandard wooden trestle bridge and construct more than one mile of double-track railroad to alleviate a key bottleneck in the LOSSAN corridor, allowing for the capacity to run an additional 10 Pacific Surfliner trains, eight commuter trains and seven freight trains.
  
  
• More than $42 million for Capitol Corridor Joint Powers Authority (CCJPA) with several partner agencies to construct a regional mobility bus and mobility hub at the Sacramento Valley Station and install contactless fare payment readers on multiple regional bus systems. Also includes project development for the Hercules station, Sacramento to Roseville service expansion and the Link21 Megaregional Rail Program.
  
  
• $46 million for Valley Transportation Authority’s (VTA) East San Jose Light Rail Extension, which will connect from the existing Alum Rock Light Rail Station to the Eastridge Transit Center, with an elevated guideway primarily in the center of Capitol Expressway. The extension will include an elevated station at Story Road and a street level station at the Eastridge Transit Center. When this project is complete, VTA riders will be able to board light rail at the Eastridge Transit Center and connect directly with Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) at the Milpitas Station.
  
  
• $10 million for Metrolink’s Locomotive Fuel Efficiency and Maintenance Modernization Project, along with an additional $15.5 million following a joint application with the Riverside County Transportation Committee (RCTC), for a double-track project along Metrolink’s 91/Perris Valley Line between the cities of Moreno Valley and Perris.
  
  
• $45 million for the Orange County Transportation Authority’s (OCTA) for two projects that will help keep the county moving safely and efficiently by bus and rail, improving air quality in the process. The state funds include $29.4 million toward the Central Mobility Loop and $5 million toward the Coastal Rail Corridor Relocation Study.

“California is making a multiyear, multibillion-dollar investment to transform and modernize our transportation infrastructure, creating jobs, alternatives to driving, and reducing pollution,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “Our state is placing a high priority on investing in public transportation projects that aim to shift away from fossil fuels while making public travel more rider friendly. Today’s announcement not only provides better travel alternatives but also helps to speed up our transition to a cleaner, healthier transportation future for all Californians.”

TIRCP has provided more than $9.8 billion in funding to 125 projects since 2015, funded primarily from Senate Bill 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, Cap-and-Trade program proceeds, and the General Fund.

A PDF of the complete list of recipients can be downloaded below.