As the California High Speed Rail Authority finalizes its plans to bring the train through, around or above Morgan Hill, city officials have a list of questions about the project and how it will impact local residents and businesses.
City Hall is thus asking the community for input on this massive project before the City Council considers sending the HSRA a “scoping letter” on the locals’ preferred alignment later this month, according to city staff.
“Regardless of the alignment that will ultimately be decided by the Authority, there are many questions that the city council and community must have answered prior to any decisions being made,” reads a Nov. 7 press release from city staff.
The HSRA’s staff and consultants are currently considering four alignment alternatives for the train that will zoom through Morgan Hill at speeds faster than 200 mph. The HSRA board will choose its preferred alignment option by spring of 2017, after which will follow an environmental review and public comment period.
The four alignment options are described as:
• At grade, on a berm, along Monterey Road or adjacent (on the east side) of the Union Pacific Railroad tracks;
• Elevated, in a viaduct, along Monterey Road or adjacent (on the east side) of the UPRR;
• Elevated in a viaduct along the west side of U.S. 101;
• Elevated in a viaduct along the east side of U.S. 101.
The viaducts in the elevated options would rise 30 to 60 feet above the ground.
While the City of Morgan Hill has “no legal authority to determine the future of the project,” the council hopes to work with the HSRA to influence the project so it “minimizes impacts on the community while developing the best project through/around Morgan Hill,” the city’s press release states.
At the Nov. 16 meeting at council chambers on Peak Avenue, the council will discuss issues and questions that should be addressed in the final draft of its scoping letter to the HSRA.
City staff have posted a draft list of questions for the HSRA on the city’s website. These include:
“Will the HSR project have lighting for safety?”
“What is the main safety mechanism if the train is derailed?”
“How does noise change at different speeds?”
“Will the Morgan Hill segment begin construction independent of progress in San Jose or Gilroy?”
Residents can view the full list of questions and submit their own by visiting the city’s website, morganhill.ca.gov/1552/High-Speed-Rail.
When completed, HSR will take travelers from San Francisco to Los Angeles in two hours, 40 minutes. The total budget of the statewide rail project is about $65 billion, which will be financed by a voter approved bond, federal stimulus grants and cap-and-trade funds, according to HSRA staff.
Construction is already underway on the HSRA section that goes from Fresno to Bakersfield. The San Jose-to-Merced section—the one that will pass through Morgan Hill—is expected to be operational by 2025, planners said.
Stations are planned in San Jose and Gilroy, among other locations throughout the project.
The project will require the HSRA to acquire private residential and commercial properties that currently stand in the way of any alignment option.
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To submit questions you would like city officials to ask of High Speed Rail Authority representatives, and to view a current draft of questions the city plans to ask, visit morganhill.ca.gov/1552/High-Speed-Rail.
