High-speed rail racing to the Peninsula

The plan for a statewide high-speed rail system is taking shape despite the fact that no one yet knows exactly how to bring the fast-moving trains through a crowded San Mateo County.

The High-Speed Rail Authority is in the preliminary planning stages to construct an 800-mile track that will move riders through the state at 220 mph. A trip between the Transbay Terminal in downtown San Francisco and Los Angeles Union Station would take about 2 hours and 40 minutes and would cost about $55 one way. There would be stops on the Peninsula in Millbrae and San Jose with possible stops in Redwood City or Palo Alto, according to the state rail authority.

At the same time, Caltrain has completed 35 percent of the environmental study required before it can begin the electrification of its line between Gilroy and San Francisco.

Both agencies are working together to adjoin their lines on the Peninsula. That means raised tracks through the Peninsula so the train will never cross paths with cars or pedestrians. There are currently 46 grade crossing on the Caltrain line, said Dominic Spaethling, regional manager for the High-Speed Rail Authority.

At this point in the process, the authority is collecting comments from anyone with concerns about the project. The comment period is open through April 6. The authority will spend the next several months designing the project and getting a better understanding of what is necessary to build the track.

The authority will likely need to expand Caltrain rails from two to four tracks. The authority and Caltrain express trains would likely run on two tracks while Caltrain local service and freight would run on the other two, Spaethling said.

A series of meetings kicked off last night in Millbrae, where a small crowd questioned authority personnel about potential noise, raised tracks, eminent domain and logistics of bringing fast-moving trains through small communities.

Spaethling said he "100 percent agrees” with concerns expanding and raising tracks through downtown San Mateo. The city was formed as a stage coach stop in 1849 and a railroad stop was constructed in 1863. The city was incorporated in 1894. By that time much of the city was built, and continues to thrive, around the downtown train station.

The new system is expected to bring 10 trains per hour — one every six minutes — once it is completed in 2035. The electric trains will produce less sound than the current diesel trains used on the line. The raised tracks will also eliminate the need for horns. Spaethling said.

However, engineers will be examining wheel sound and vibrations, he said.

The potential to exercise eminent domain is a likely probability, but Spaethling said without specific designs in place, it is hard to say for certain what properties would stand in the way of the train.

"We’re really not interested in taking people’s property,” Spaethling said.

Concerned property owners can expect to hear details about plans in the next six to nine months, Spaethling said.

Box: High-Speed Rail meetings

• 7 p.m. Thursday at the Palo Alto Mitchell Park Community Center at 3800 Middlefield Road.

• 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 4 in the Redwood City Veterans Memorial Senior Center at 1455 Madison Ave.

• Anyone interested in submitting comments on the scope of the environmental impact report can send them in writing to Deputy Director Dan Leavitt, ATTN: San Francisco to San Jose HST Project EIR/EIS, California High-Speed Rail Authority, 925 L St., Ste. 1425, Sacramento.

Comments can also be submitted via e-mail with the subject line "San Francisco to San Jose HST” to comments@hsr.ca.gov. Additional information about the high-speed rail environmental review process can be found at http://www.cahighspeedrail.gov.

Dana Yates can be reached by e-mail: dana@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 106.