Cities Must Find Consensus on High-Speed Rail, Speier Tells County Leaders

City leaders from Burlingame, San Mateo, Redwood City and Millbrae talked about their concerns on Nov. 9 over the high-speed rail line planned to run through the Peninsula and connect the Bay Area to Southern California.

Palo Alto, Atherton and Menlo Park  the High-Speed Rail Authority over its plans, saying the trains will have adverse impacts on local communities, and the cities of Millbrae, San Mateo, Burlingame and Redwood City sent letters to Speier and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo asking for additional federal funds to build the tracks below grade.

"We've been inadvertently planning for high-speed rail for 30 years," said South San Francisco Mayor Mark Addiego. "All the industry was always next to rail; we're in a really great position."

Addiego said Speier told the city leaders it was essential for them to reach a consensus, especially considering it will be even more difficult to get federal funds for rail projects under the new Republican majority in the House of Representatives.  But Addiego acknowledged that with some cities suing the rail authority, it's a wide chasm to bridge.

"If you see where the station is in Menlo Park, it really does destroy their downtown," he said.  "It's correct to support some of the other communities, but I would never risk not having [high-speed rail]."

Speier's staff will be coordinating a letter from Caltrain CEO Michael Scanlon to the High-Speed Rail Authority that city councils can sign onto asking that the forthcoming environmental impact report consider options such as tunneling.