HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolution - 98-45 1, RESOLUTION NO. 98-45
IN SUPPORT OF RAILROAD TO RAILROAD
GRADE SEPARATION PROJECT AT COLTON, CALIFORNIA
WIII REAS, the efficient movement of people and goods is essential to the health and
economy of the region and the nation, and
WHEREAS, freight railroads play a pivotal role in interstate commerce, and
WHEREAS, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are the major ports of entry on the
Pacific Coast, and
WIIEREAS, tremendous growth in railroad operation, particularly intermodal and other
through-freight, has resulted in significant community impacts, and
WHEREAS, the demand for rail shipments will continue to grow with the expansion of
the Ports, the completion ofthe.Alameda Corridor, and population growth in the region, and
WHEREAS the main lines of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and the Union Pacific, the
only major railroads operating in Southern California, carry the majority of rail freight traffic
between the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the rest of the nation, and Mexico on their
routes through the Inland Empire, and
WHEREAS these railroads must cross each other at Colton Junction, and
WHEREAS Colton .Junction has been identified as the major choke point for rail traffic in
the region, where an average delay of fourteen minutes per train triggers substantial congestion
and blockages along the corridors, and
WHEREAS diesel emissions caused by multiple locomotives idling along the corridors
while waiting to cross Colton Junction further exacerbate the unhealthful air quality in the South
Coast Air Basin, the worst non-attainment area in the nation, and
WH) REAS railroad congestion has resulted in many freight shipments being shifted to
diesel trucks on the region's already congested highways, and
WI IEREAS railroad congestion in Southern California has caused expensive delays to
local shippers as well as to manufacturers and others throughout the country, and
WHEREAS, these same main line freight corridors are utilized for the provision of
commuter passenger rail (Metrolink) and intercity passenger rail (Amtrak) service, whose
p operations are consistently impacted by freight congestion, and
l
WHEREAS insufficient operating capacity has delayed the implementation of other { '
passenger rail services, including service between Los Angeles and the Coachella Valley, and
WHEREAS the federal Transportation Equity Act for the Twenty-First Century (TEA-
21), identifies the ".Alameda Corridor Past" and the"Southwest Passage" as eligible corridors for
federal infrastructure funding, and further identifies NAFTA-related improvements as a priority
for federal funding, and
WHEREAS Colton Junction is located at the eastern terminus of the Alameda Corridor
East and near the western Terminus of the Southwest Passage, and most NAFTA rail freight into
or through Southern California is carried on the BNSF and UP main lines across Colton Junction,
and
WHEREAS the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) has identified
these corridors and NAFTA improvements as priorities within its recently adopted Regional
Transportation Plan. and
WHEREAS the State of California, through Caltrans, is initiating a Project Study Report
to further refine the project and identity, appropriate resources;
NOW THEREFORE BE [T RESOLVED that the Mayor and City Council of the City of
San Jacinto do hereby endorse and support the efforts of the Riverside County Transportation
Commission in securing the necessary federal and state funding to construct a separation of the
Burlington Northern Santa Fe and (anion Pacific railroads at Colton Junction.
APPROVED AND ADOPTED thiSQrd day of September, 1998
AYES: Couricilmemhers Conner, Cornett, Cood, Williams & Smedley
NOES- None
ABSTAIN: gone
ABSENT None
ayor
ATTEST
Pamela L Lee
City Clerk