California State Rail Plan 2007-08 to 2017-18

Chapter X – Potential New Services• The proposed system design was based upon Maglev technology developed bythe German consortium Transrapid. Recently, the choice of Maglev has beenplaced under review. An Alternatives Analysis is currently underway by aconsultant to compare steel wheel with Maglev technology on two routes in theInitial Operating Segment (IOS) for ridership, cost, speed, etc. This analysis isdue for completion by December 31, 2007.• The proposed project serves a very dense corridor defined by the FederalGovernment as a Corridor of National Significance. By 2020, about2.5 million long distance trips would be made in the corridor.• In December 2002, the corridor was shortened by the SCAG Regional Councilto an IOS that spanned 54-miles from West Los Angeles to the OntarioAirport. The IOS would serve approximately 130,000 riders per day. Traveltimesavings from one end of the line to the other was estimated to be33 minutes.• The IOS was estimated to cost about $8 billion (2006 dollars) to construct.Approximately 24 percent of this cost was for the system elements: vehicles,communications, propulsion, and operation control. The cost of the guidewaywas about 43 percent of the total cost. Stations, yards and shops, rights-of-way(ROW), and other civil works comprise the remainder of the project costs.With the FY 2001 Federal funding, SCAG performed additional studies on thisproject, including evaluation of the impacts of the project on use of highway andrailroad ROW, on Los Angeles Union Station (LAUS), and on the Metrolinkcommuter rail system. SCAG also completed further work in the areas oftechnology transfer agreements, cost and revenue projections, financial plan,public/private partnering agreements, environmental studies, and publicparticipation.In FFY 2001, SCAG received $877,000 in FRA funding. In FFY 2002, SCAGreceived $1.0 million in FRA funding for continued corridor planning activities.In FFY 2003, an additional $500,000 in FRA funding was provided to supportfurther planning studies. In FFY 2004, SCAG received an additional $1.0 millionin FRA funding.In addition to the project described above, SCAG has undertaken three additionalMaglev/high-speed rail feasibility studies along other heavily congested corridors.They are: 1) Los Angeles to Palmdale in Antelope Valley, along the SR-14 and I-5or I-405 freeway corridors; 2) LAX to south Orange County, along the I-405Freeway; and 3) the Orangeline from downtown Los Angeles to central OrangeCounty following the former Pacific Electric Railway corridor. This corridor isnot under the jurisdiction of SCAG but the Orangeline Development Authority(OLDA) Joint Powers Authority (JPA).181