*UPDATED PER REVISED SJJPA AND SJRRC PRESS RELEASES, ISSUED 1/6: The San Joaquin Joint Powers Authority (SJJPA) and the San Joaquin Regional Rail Commission (SJRRC) on Jan. 6 announced several grant awards for the Valley Rail Program, including $2 million from the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)—not $122 million as announced Jan. 2—and $5 million from California’s Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program.
According to SJJPA, the $2 million from the FRA was awarded through the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program and will provide funding for The Rail Academy of Central California (TRACC).
“As the momentum around TRACC continues to grow, SJRRC would like to thank the FRA for its support,” said David Lipari, Deputy Director of SJRRC. “As California continues to invest in rail, workforce development is essential to strengthen the future of both freight and passenger rail.”
The CRISI funds will also support The Rail Academy of Central California by funding instructor salaries and equipment, class supplies for onboard instruction such as railroad radios and railroad flares, personal protective equipment for students of the program including safety glasses, earplugs, hard hats, safety vests, and work boots, and other program costs.
Creating TRACC is a direct strategy to attract and train new talent in the rail industry, according to SJJPA. “With a limited workforce that is aging and cycling out, it is important to enhance training programs to prepare the next generation of highly skilled transportation workers. TRACC will help train and prepare graduates to have successful, well-paying careers with freight and passenger railroads,” SJJPA said.
TRACC will combine teaching of the FRA-approved curriculum along with hands-on training at the Altamont Corridor Express Rail Maintenance Facility (RMF) in Stockton. The program will not only benefit students and the rail industry, but it will also support economic development in Valley communities that have been historically disadvantaged, SJJPA noted.
Additionally, the Valley Rail program has secured the following series of grant awards that SJJPA says will “enhance rail connectivity, support transit-oriented housing development, and provide system integration with regional networks. These include:
- Award by the State’s Highly Competitive Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program: SJRRC and SJJPA partnered with the Capital Area Development Authority (CADA) and secured funding to support development of 134 units of affordable housing in the Sakura Project, as well funding for transit improvements that will benefit the project area. The grant will provide $5 million for the purchase of a zero-emission mobile unit (ZEMU) powered by hydrogen, which will be used to pull Valley Rail trains. The grant will also fund $1.5 million for the future Midtown Station which is a key part of the Valley Rail Program. The Sakura project, located at the corner of 16th and T Street, is a five-story mixed use building that is being developed by CADA and Mutual Housing California and will be about 1/2 mile from Midtown Station. It is well aligned with the AHSC Program goals, which aims to finance projects that advance smart growth principles and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Award for San Joaquin Valley Network Integration: SJJPA and SJRRC partnered with the San Joaquin Regional Policy Council and secured $600,000 to pursue network integration and create an Action Plan for transit-oriented development. The project will analyze and improve how the various transit and rail services work together throughout the San Joaquin Valley so that riders have access to convenient, coordinated transportation. This effort will include coordination amongst eight different Council of Governments (COGs) throughout the Valley as well as local air districts. Additionally, the grant will include a study to identify where transit-oriented development makes the most sense and how that development would align with the growing transportation services.
- Award for Connectivity Planning Study for New Lodi Station: The City of Lodi and the San Joaquin Council of Governments, in partnership with SJJPA and SJRRC, secured $450,000 for planning work to determine how to effectively connect a newly constructed Valley Rail train station in Lodi with the current train station that is located in downtown Lodi. The Valley Rail program must run trains along the “Sacramento subdivision” railroad tracks, which are located further west away from the existing downtown Lodi station, which receives trains running along the “Fresno subdivision” tracks. As such, the City of Lodi will soon have two train stations in service: the downtown Lodi station will be served by two daily San Joaquin trains, and the new Valley Rail Lodi station will eventually be served by seven new San Joaquin trains and three new ACE Rail trains each day. This planning grant will help identify the best way to create connectivity between both stations for riders and the community.
“These grant awards demonstrate the incredible momentum being generated by the Valley Rail program,” said Stacy Mortensen, Executive Director of SJJPA and SJRRC. “We are successfully bringing transportation investments into communities throughout the Valley and working together with partners to leverage those opportunities to also improve housing and local transit connections. We are proud to see the Valley Rail program serving as a catalyst for transit-oriented development, reduced emissions, and improved regional connectivity.”
* According to Tom van der List, an SJJPA and SJRRC spokesman, the reason for the update—$2 million from the FRA CRISI program rather than the previously released figure of $122 million—was due to “some miscommunication internally.”
