Carlsbad digs deeper into trenching ideaPriorities. They’re spending Encinitas’ money on pensions and the Beacons Skyway.
What are Deep Community Roots Kranz and Preserve Paradise Blakespear doing about putting the tracks below grade in Encinitas?
Sunday, December 23, 2018
Carlsbad moving toward trenching train tracks
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Carlsbad won't be building anything until they receive the guarantee of Federal money.
ReplyDeleteHere's the estimated cost in Palo Alto..
ReplyDeletehttp://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2015/10/18/palo-alto-seeks-1-billion-for-train-trench-from-vta-tax
More like Deep Developer Pockets Kranz.
ReplyDeleteDid 7:13 & 7:26 read the U-T story?
ReplyDelete"Trenching through Carlsbad could cost as much as $335 million — but could also benefit the city’s economy by as much as $22 billion over the next century, that study showed.
"Carlsbad is using money from its general fund to plan the project, but so far no source has been found to pay for construction. Still, because of the project’s many benefits, it’s a likely candidate for regional, state and federal transportation grants."
Yeah, it's a candidate, not a done deal. Bottom line: any project of this project requires federal money.
DeleteSounds like someone overly committed to the status quo in Encinitas. Ask Tony.
ReplyDeleteThe only way that project brings in $22B is if they strike gold in the dig.
ReplyDelete$22 billion over 100 years is easy gravy. Carlsbad is likely to get the bucks to do its dig because they made the commitment. It's backwards in Encinitas because muy macho Tony nor anybody else has the cajones to go for it.
ReplyDeleteFollow the (Kranz) money.
ReplyDeleteThe Encinitas City Council Sucks. They are totally backward thinking.
ReplyDeleteWhile Carlsbad plans on trenching its tracks, Encinitas paints their sharrows green- I guess to signify the color of payments for settlements. They should have just painted the sharrows red considering thats the most prevalent color on that road.
The conditions of the roadway is just as deadly as it was when both women were mowed over by vehicles. Its really fast road- where is the bike lane?
Maybe the Mayor should ride with her family in the sharrow lane.
There is blood all over the hands at City Hall. Who will be the next victim sucked into a false sense of security?
Lets all pray for Roberta and all those mowed down on Encinitas streets while walking or bicycling. Please be careful out there, the streets are not good.
Hope they take sea level rise into account...
ReplyDeleteMuir pushed to underground the tracks, but other council members said No because it cost too much. Real reason - needed money for STREETSCAPE!
ReplyDeleteMuir never pushed for anything but indulging the fire department and maintaining his outrageous pension. Don't make a guy who was never a strong advocate into a saint.
DeletePackard, Norby and others in Carlsbad actually pushed for RR track grade separation there. That's why it's happening. Nobody in Encinitas has done the same. That's why it's not happening.
I went back and reviewed the tapes, you're wrong 2:25, he did support undergrounding. Deal with the facts and don't make shit up because you don't like anyone (teachers, firefighters, police officers, etc.) that make a pension. If you don't like pensions vote for those that oppose it. Oh that's right, that would be nobody!
DeleteBullshit, 4:18. You didn't go back and review anything. 1:32 said Muir "pushed to underground the tracks." First off, if the tracks were underground, they'd be in a tunnel. The point is grade separation — a trench like Solana Beach, not a tunnel. Second, and 2:25's point: Muir never pushed for anything unless it benefitted the FD and his pension. He was never an advocate for the community. He was a milquetoast making safe votes, never a firebrand.
Delete4:18 — You're justifying Muir's $185,000 pension?
DeleteGet real!
That's double the median income for Encinitas people who work for a living!
Shockingly high but hardly a surprise, 6:14. Runaway pensions are a nationwide issue.
DeleteTurn your outrage toward Phony Tony. He's a sitting council member currently making decisions that affect you and me. He appears to have his fingers in more pies than he has fingers.
Check the stats. Municipal salaries, benefits and pensions are much higher in California than nationwide.
Delete“Muir pushed to underground the tracks”
DeleteHow?
Did he agendize it? Ask for a staff report on feasibility? Make a proposal? Did he develop a funding strategy?
What specific actions did he take?
What were the results of his actions; what specifically did he achieve?
Nada, that's the point.
DeleteThere have already been several studies of trenching under Leucadia Blvd with the last one in 2005-2006 fairly detailed. It provided 3 alternatives with the 2 trenching alternatives in the $150-160 Million range. This project is included in SANDAG's regional plan although not currently funded.
ReplyDeleteCarlsbad's economic analysis for trenching the tracks through the city is really pretty nebulous with numbers pulled out of their nether regions. Here is their report's executive summary:
"Economic benefits of trenching the railroad tracks were detailed in the Economic Study: LOSSAN Corridor improvement Options – Carlsbad Area by RSG, Inc./Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc./dBF Associates (See Attachment A). Benefits listed in the study include increased property values, additional interest in redevelopment in the area, increased development density near transit, increased property taxes, and job creation. Additionally, the study relates an economic benefit to lives saved by grade separating the railroad tracks and to the reduction in delay at the railroad crossings.
"The reduction in traffic congestion and noise, as well as increased walkability could make property in the area more desirable, which can raise property values and improve the experience of visitors to the area. Higher property values would increase property taxes and be more attractive to developers. Lower noise levels and improved walkability may increase the number of visitors to the area and lead to generation of higher sales tax revenues."
Bottom line is Carlsbad still has to find the money but Encinitas shouldn't be asleep at the wheel and allow Carlsbad to cut in line ahead of it. Leucadia Blvd has some real safety issues.
9:33
ReplyDeleteRather than looking at Carlsbad's projections and going under only Leucadia Blvd, look at Solana Beach. Have the RR trench and double tracks from one end of the city to the other worked well and been a benefit there or not?
We don't have to consider hypotheticals when we have reality in our neighbor city to the south.
12:12 PM
DeleteSolana Beach had the good fortune of timing. Since Del Mar didn't want the Coaster station, Solana Beach agreed to it under the condition that the trains wouldn't block Lomas Santa Fe so they trenched the tracks using federal money. The tracks already went under Via De La Valle. Amtrak decided to join the Coaster in Solana Beach. Also, Solana Beach is a lot smaller than Encinitas.
The kind of money Solana Beach was able to tap into is long gone. Besides if you divide Encinitas into three segments of Cardiff, Downtown and Leucadia only the last two have economic incentives to remove the track barrier as there is little development west of the tracks in Cardiff. However, trenching through Downtown would be very expensive and highly disruptive. Of the three segments, Leucadia is the most likely.
7:36 —
DeleteCorrect that north of Encinitas Blvd to La Costa Ave is most likely. That distance is 2.5 miles. The Solana trench is 1.5 miles.
Carlsbad has made progress toward trenching due to advocacy. Nobody with power and influence is an advocate in Encinitas.
Solana Beach facts and funding:
This is from the Amtrak website regarding the Solana Beach trenching project, which was done in 1995.
The grade separation cost approximately $18 million, with funds gathered from the following sources:
• $5.8 million through Proposition 116, a 1990 state initiative to fund rail projects
• $6.7 million from the Federal Transit Administration
• $2.5 million from Amtrak
• $1.4 million from the city of Solana Beach
• $1.1 million from the state’s Capital Improvement Program
• $500,000 from Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad
The construction company’s website cites $17.7 million. The figures above add to $18 million, so they’ve been rounded.
Yes, I know inflation has made the cost a lot higher. If you want to drop the pretense of being the ultimate authority, I'll tell you more you don't know.
8:26 PM
Delete"If you want to drop the pretense of being the ultimate authority, I'll tell you more you don't know." Touchy aren't we. I'm not the "ultimate authority" but I do think the discussion should be based on facts and I thank you for adding to them.
Prop 116 allocated $45 M to San Diego as part of the $202 M for all of LOSSAN. That's probably where the $5.8 M came from as well as the $2.8 M for the station which was funded separately. As far as I can tell (I'm no authority), Prop 116 funds have all been allocated and pretty much spent, although AB 2620 (2016) allows unused funds to be reallocated. Amtrak contributed $2.5 M which I don’t see them doing here in Encinitas as they don’t serve it.
With SANDAG’s admission that their economic forecasts for Transnet revenue was overly optimistic, I doubt (but I’m no authority) there is much available there. Federal grants for rail projects have greatly declined in recent years although there is still some talk of an infrastructure program that might offer some funds (but I’m no authority).
So the question remains, where is the money coming from? This is true for Encinitas or Carlsbad.
It would have to come from the Federal government, which in case you haven't noticed, isn't in love with CA right now.
DeleteTrenching Solana was disruptive. Trenching Alameda from the port toward LA was disruptive. Trenching Carlsbad will be disruptive. Doubling the tracks will be disruptive. Not trenching when doubling is shortsighted and insane.
DeleteObviously, funding for trenching anywhere would not come from the identical sources as Solana. The point is that funding is available if the commitment is made to get it. Advocacy will bring it to Carlsbad; advocacy would bring it to Encinitas.
Where did the funding for the Chesterfield, Swami's and El Portal crossings come from? Where will it come from for the Verdi and Grandview crossings? If those funds had been accumulated, we would have taken a big step toward funding trenching.
9:12, your negative attitude and lack of will and foresight is why trenching in Encinitas has gone nowhere. Success requires advocacy, a can-do attitude.
SANDAG allocated $6.5 billion to the North Coast transportation corridor. Only about $800 million of that is for rails. The rest is for the freeway. Straighten out that imbalance, and there's the funding for trenching.
2:37 PM
Delete"The point is that funding is available if the commitment is made to get it" Where? Name a few sources and whether those funds have to be shared between multiple projects like your example of NCC. As I understand it, Chesterfield funding is part of the NCC project. Swami's and El Portal are funded from several sources , including grants, but don't have the capability of funding even Leucadia trenching.
"9:12, your negative attitude and lack of will and foresight is why trenching in Encinitas has gone nowhere." Not really. I just want to be realistic. I agree that Encinitas should continue to strongly advocate for trenching at least in Leucadia. After all, trenching under Leucadia Blvd is in the Regional Transportation Plan and the city has a report with conceptual plans for it. Since that report is over 10 years old it probably needs to be updated but I'd bet we're further along than Carlsbad.
Bottom line, I want the city to be aggressive as you do but we have to be realistic. If money does become available I want the city to be able move quickly.
If the money becomes available? You must be joking. The money is there to be had. The point is people in positions of power and influence have to go get it. They have to commit. They have to advocate. They have to rally. They can't have an attitude like yours, 3:55.
DeleteStocks was the only council member that knew how to get the city funding for projects. Blakespear has to step up her game.
Delete9:13 PM
Delete"The money is there to be had." And yet you can't even identify where that money is. Not one source. Yes, cities vie for funding and it's often the most aggressive, prepared and connected that get it but trenching is very expensive and would require a huge chunk of money. Encinitas has gotten money in the past but not at this scale. As Solana Beach did, trenching would probably be funded from several sources but each would still have to contribute a lot.
Trenching would be competing with projects like the NCC and Mid-Coast Trolley extension that are also very expensive but are expanding services while trenching through Encinitas wouldn't do anything toward expanding the rail service. It certainly would improve the lives of Encinitas residents and make the rail corridor safer but the service would remain the same. They already are in the process of fully double-tracking it through Encinitas.
So if you mean that I'm not wildly jumping up and down with enthusiasm to find the money as you seem to be then you're right. I'm not. That doesn't mean I don't want to be aggressive. I do. I also want to be realistic. I want to identify the sources of funding and aggressively go after it.
9:21
DeleteDid you fail to read this, or did your defeatist attitude cause you to ignore it after reading?
"SANDAG allocated $6.5 billion to the North Coast transportation corridor. Only about $800 million of that is for rails. The rest is for the freeway. Straighten out that imbalance, and there's the funding for trenching."
It's elected and appointed officials' job to identify funding sources and go after them, not mine or yours.
None of those officials have the balls or guts to go for it. That's the root of the problem. They think and act like you.
SANDAG & NCTD say doubling the tracks through North County is supposed to happen by 2035. Rail traffic is expected to double from the ~50 trains a day to ~100 a day. So, yes, service would increase.
DeleteTracks are now not doubled in Encinitas from E Street to Batiquitos Lagoon. Doubling without trenching would be a public safety, traffic and noise nightmare, even with a quiet zone.
There is no argument to justify doubling without trenching. Both would be expensive, and the money is there to be gotten. Solana got it. Carlsbad is in the process of getting it. Encinitas should get on board.
3:09 PM
Delete"There is no argument to justify doubling without trenching. Both would be expensive, and the money is there to be gotten." Really? You're saying the two costs are equivalent? I'm quite aware that the bulk of NCC funds are going to the I-5 corridor. How many Encinitas residents would favor not improving I-5 but would instead want the money to be spent on trenching through Encinitas? At least those residents not along the rail corridor and use the I-5 to commute to work. The double-tracking is proceeding without trenching and NCTD wants to fence it for safety reasons.
So you go with the argument to ignore the I-5 and spend it on trenching instead and see how many converts you get. Remember, the city council represents all of Encinitas not just those who live along the rail corridor like me (and I assume you as well).
11:48
Delete$5.7 BILLION for the freeway, $800 million for the rail corridor. Does that look like equivalence to you?
Double-tracking is not proceeding from E St to the Batiquitos Lagoon nor from the Buena Vista Lagoon south through downtown Carlsbad. And if it does without trenching, we will be stuck with a public safety, traffic and noise nightmare forever.
Merry Xmas Encinitas. Carlsbad will enjoy undergrounding and Encinitas will continue with shitty management and a Shitty Mayor and City Council.
ReplyDeleteHwy 101 decorated all in green and red... how nice. Color of Xmas? Right. More like $$$ for judgments and the blood spilled and will be spilled since they still lack the will to add a bikelane on that deadly road. WTF? Two women nearly dead or maybe dead and nothing but some green paint. Wow. Fing clueless. Say goodbye to tax dollars. This City Management sucks.
Blakespear promised and demand a separate bike lane! Still wailting!!! The lack of action by this Mayor is unbelieveable. All talk, no action! You can only blame staff so long before it become your fault.
ReplyDeleteDon't ride on 101, morons!
ReplyDeleteYou should not drive and you need to turn in your drivers license. You do not know the laws of the road which is deadly. Please quite driving and take uber or lyft. Bicyclists have the same rights to the road as vehicles and its the City's responsibility to provide designs that provide safe infrastructure for all the users.
DeleteN. Coast Hwy 101 is currently a deathtrap with the shared green/red paint enticing riders to share the space with 50 mph vehicles and more are at serious risk. The City is liable and the citizens will pay for the mismanagement for years to come. Sad but true. Who is accountable?
Death trap? There have been more people killed in the rail corridor than on Highway 101. Is that the fault of the speeding trains?
DeleteAre there separated bike lanes through downtown Encinitas? Solana Beach? Del Mar? Why single out Leucadia?
DeleteHow stupid do you have to be to ride on 101 when there are alternatives? Defiantly riding on 101 is like shooting yourself in the head to protest gun violence.
11:39- Dumbass. Its not the speeding trains. Its called suicide and those stupid signs do nothing but cause sign pollution.
DeleteIt has been over 2 weeks since Blakespear promised a new safe striped bike lane. Don't make promises you can't keep if you still want to run this city. Why the delays?
ReplyDeleteThe Mayor is a moron and the staff management sucks. Nothing positive ever gets done. Unless your a big time developer or PB style bar owner (union), the City Management is working against its citizens. Pathetic and deadly.
ReplyDelete**you’re**
DeleteYou’re is a contraction of the words “you” and “are.” Your indicates possession (e.g. your house, your dog).
Here’s a handy tip to show others that you mastered third grade English:
In any contraction with an apostrophe, the apostrophe marks the exact place where one or more letters have been eliminated in the merging of two words.
You are —> you’re (“a” is eliminated)
They are—> they’re (same)
Can not—> can’t (“no” is eliminated)
Were not—> weren’t (“o” is eliminated)
We were—> we’re (“we” is eliminated)
Any time you are confused about two spellings of a homonym, use the apostrophe trick to figure out which is corrrect.
It only takes a second, and people will take your comments more seriously knowing they are coming from someone who successfully completed third grade.
Hope this helps.
Oops.
DeleteCorrection:
We are—> we’re (“a” is eliminated)
Thanks Grammar Grandma. Glad you get so much pleasure correcting grammar. Whatever floats your boat.
DeleteHey, 3:33, if you can't get simple English right, how do you expect anybody to value what you post? Sloppy language and sloppy thinking are a pair.
DeleteBicyclists may have the same "rights" on the road as cars, but I have seen little evidence of riders following the rules, like stopping at stop signs, especially in neighborhoods, such as Oceanview and the streets around the Library. It is NOT the city's responsibility to help you. You are adults and should follow the rules and the law. Oh, I see there are puddles on the Hwy today. Maybe if you bike riders whine long enough the city will solve that problem for you as well. People who drive cars are not the enemy, but playing the victim, as you bike riders are doing, isn't helping this situation one damn bit.
ReplyDeleteThis is a common argument I see whenever a bicyclist is hit, that cyclists don't follow the rules. I would ask this, how many times a day do you see people in cars breaking the rules doing a rolling stop, talking on phones, not yielding at a crosswalk? Don't fall into the trap of arguing about cars vs. bikes. The issue is about overall road safety for everyone, cars, peds and bikes. Everyone can and should be safe in the roadway.
DeleteI see law breaking on both sides, but cyclists hold themselves up as holier than the rest of us.
DeleteThat's the main diff I see between the two. If I were trying to get people to see the light and adopt a cycling-centric world view I'd be damned sure I obeyed the rules and didn't give all cyclists a really, really bad name.
So what is they're holier than thou, rise above. It's all perception. People are just riding a bike, not necessarily making a political statement. I think we can get along...
Delete1:55 You are moving the goal post. I said NOTHING about any accident. You are correct, the roads around here are not safe, but they aren't anywhere else, I might add. FYI, I rode a bike in Redondo Beach for 4 years. 3 miles to work and back. Then after we moved here another 5 years on a bike only. When someone HAS to do it, it's a drag.
ReplyDeleteA few years ago at the Summer Fun on the 101, Dave Roberts asked me what would I most want from the county supervisors money.
ReplyDeleteAt that moment a train barreled through the Leucadia Blvd intersection. I pointed to that train.
He told me there was no will to pursue coming from anyone at our city to lower the tracks.
Missing in action was, and is our city, over this division of our community.
Without the will from our electeds, we have what we have, and will continue until that changes.
Has Kristin done a thing for us as the chairman fo the County Supervisors?
Will Tasha do anything for us from the State Assembly?
99% of our 101 is used by automobiles. Yes, that is a guess.
ReplyDelete1% of the 101 traffic use on our 101 is bicycles. Yes, that is another guess.
How is it that this 1% can dominate the actions of our city on their behalf and ignore the 99% that use this major arterial?
There should be no sharing of the roadway with cyclists, optimally speaking.
Cyclists should be separated off of the vehicular roadway for any real safety. Obviously.
Because the 99% of vehicle drivers suck so bad they kill other people all the time. Vehicle drivers include DUIs, texting, old clueless drivers who are not capable of driving yet they do.
ReplyDeleteIf you can't share the road with pedestrians and bikes, do not drive Moron. Turn in your keys.
When is the last time a bicyclist killed someone?
Right.... its always the shitty vehicle drivers in their huge death machine. The City is failing to provide safe infrastructure for all users.
I used to train with the U.S. cycling team in the 70's. We rode SINGLE FILE unless we were passing because we respected the laws...........OF PHYSICS.
DeleteWhen was the last time a cyclist got themselves killed - or seriously injured?
DeleteThat's a question for you, 4:32.
>> When is the last time a bicyclist killed someone?
Delete2012 maybe?
There are way more motor vehicle violations that threaten cyclists than cyclist violations.
DeleteNext time you drive down 101, count the number of vehicles in the bike lane:
Waiting for a parking space to open up
Picking up or dropping off passengers
Realtors stopped in the bike lane to post or collect open house signs
Commercial delivery trucks
Parcel delivery trucks
Uber and Lyft
Pulling into the bike lane to turn right before it becomes a shared, dashed, right turn lane.
Cars pulling out of a parking space into the bike lane without looking.
These are all vehicle code violations. And they are way more frequent and numerous than the cyclist violations that you notice.
Roads should be made safer. And we should all become more aware and safer as drivers.
4:32 "Moron". Nice. Name calling. Just what I would expect from these people.
DeleteCount the number of bicyclists that run stop signs, red lights, violate pedestrians rights of way, stop where vehicles can't make a legal right turn on a red light, ride on the side walks, etc. Don't tell me there are more vehicle violations than bicyclists.
Delete“stop where vehicles can't make a legal right turn on a red light”
DeleteCongratulations. Dumbest comment of the thread.
$100 if you can cite the CVC being violated.
Blakespear is all talk, blah, blah, blah. She's not willing to take on staff and only does what city manager tell her to do.
ReplyDeleteSo right. Just gave THE shittiest City Manager praise and raise and for what?
ReplyDeleteMore deadly situations on the road, more homeless, and more density.
I used to think I liked this Mayor because she supported complete streets, however, I now see her as complete idiot supporting a complete dumbass City Manager.
Fakespear is a spineless wimp controlled by Brust. Sad but True.
ReplyDeleteFuck all citizens.
It's all upside down. Brust relies on Wisneski, who relies on staff, who rely on monied interests. You can see it play out at every meeting.
DeleteFairly often the monied interests go straight to the council. You can see that play out, too.
All our millions in tax dollars is about to get awarded to the huge law suites about to drop due to negligence. Waite for it......
ReplyDeleteand what does the City do? Adds green paint to the blood red sharrows. Smart management right?
I have an excellent idea. Since bicycle riders claim they have the same rights as cars, and enjoy the roads we all pay for, they should be required to obtain a driver's license the same as a vehicle.
ReplyDeleteBlakespear will fold on the bike lane she promised, you wait and see. The city manager controls every move she makes.
ReplyDeleteNo, Blakespear just steps before she looks. Not defending staff, but she did blindside them with her "make it happen NOW" demand. To expect her "professional staff" to move quickly on anything shows how asleep at the wheel she really is. They can't think that fast and they certainly can't fight their way out of a paper bag, so can't act that fast.
DeleteBlakespear didn't do the same for the wheelchair-bound fellow who has already been hospitalized twice, thanks to Blakespear's "professional staff" crosswalk design.
Blakespear saw a political opportunity to accelerate streetscape and is using it, that's all. No need to get all wadded up over Brust and her galpal Wisneski. This one's on Blakespear - again. That staff is can't or won't get it done quickly is also on her.
Yes. Flakespear is controlled by the City Manager and thats why so many things at City Hall are F'd up.
DeleteThings will not get better until the City gets new blood that will take action. Prepare for more waste, huge losses, and more praise for the shitty performance. Watch the City Council give a ton of raises for great City management performance. Lets see how much tax payers money the City Council can waste, it seems endless.
Vote against all the incumbents.
Dumb and Dumber.....
ReplyDeleteBlakespear told people that she got Jody elected. She already has Joe, so she now has 3 votes to appoint her 4th follower. Don't know where Tony's is. So, I only have 3 words... Hail to the Queen!
ReplyDeleteThe Dictator!
DeleteShe hauled Jody around to every house meeting she could find to push her so she could have another lockstep vote to make a majority.
Hubbard rode Blakespear's coattails just like Kranz did before her. Neither could have done it alone. Blakespear won't be quite the seal of approval next round, though. Her value in the peoples' eyes is sinking.