Coast Corridor Rail Project

1. RECEIVE update on the planned increase in passenger rail service along the coast corridor between San Francisco and Los Angeles; and
2. RECOMMEND the Board of Directors appoint representatives to the Coast Rail Coordinating Council Policy Committee.

The Transportation Agency Board previously appointed Mayor Dave Potter (RPC Vice Chair) and Mayor Mike LeBarre (RPC Chair) to the Coast Rail Coordinating Council, and Mayor Potter has been its Chair for several years. Staff asks the Committee to consider recommending the Board reappoint both to the Council for 2023.

The Coast Rail project capital and operation costs are under evaluation. The Agency budget includes funding for Board member travel to Coast Rail Coordinating Council and associated meetings.

The Coast Rail Coordinating Council (CRCC) is a multi-agency advisory and planning organization focused on improving the rail corridor between Los Angeles and the San Francisco bay area along the California Central Coast. Members of the Council include all regional transportation planning agencies along the Central Coast – all of which have a strong interest in improving rail service and the rail infrastructure along the Central Coast’s portion of the California Coast Passenger Rail Corridor.

The CRCC Policy Committee met via videoconference on November 18, 2022 and discussed legislative issues, debriefed on the October Sacramento and Sonoma County field trips, and received updates from partner agencies.

In January 2022, the TAMC Board approved the Rail Policy Committee recommended appointment of Dave Potter as the TAMC representative and Mike LeBarre as the TAMC alternate for a one-year term, and the CRCC Policy Committee selected Mr. Potter as the Chair. The Rail Policy Committee is now asked to recommend appointments to the CRCC Policy Committee for the period ending January 2024. The appointment involves attending up to four meetings of the Committee and potentially representing the group at a legislative day in Sacramento and the California Passenger Rail Summit, should they occur in 2023.

In 2022, most Policy Committee meetings were virtual. There was one in-person meeting in Monterey and one trip combining two purposes, to Sacramento to discuss legislative and funding issues, and to the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) train to see that train in operation and visit the operation center. In 2023, staff is anticipating the return to in-person meetings with the Governor's planned lifting of the pandemic state of emergency on February 28, 2023. Attached is the draft schedule of meetings, subject to change. The next meeting is tentatively scheduled for February 24, 2023 via teleconference.

Meanwhile, TAMC staff is coordinating a trip for the Rail Policy Committee and the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission to tour the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) system. Staff will provide a verbal update at the meeting.