19E - SANTA ANA GRADE SEPARATION PROJECT

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Santa Ana Blvd. Grade Separation 1 INTRODUCTION The City of Santa Ana (City) and Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), in cooperation with Caltrans and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), propose to grade separate the current at -grade crossing of Santa Ana Boulevard with the Southern California Regional Rail Authority ( SCRRA) double tracks. The project objective is to eliminate the at -grade crossing of the railroad traffic and the vehicular traffic; improve safety at the crossing for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists; provide unimpeded access for emergency responders; and, enhance traffic operations and reduce existing traffic congestion and delay. Both an overhead alternative and an underpass alternative were considered. The overhead alternative was deemed non - viable because of concerns and opposition expressed by members of an adjacent neighborhood. A No -Build Alternative was not considered, with the exception of within the traffic studies discussed later in this report, as it does not meet the project objective. The preferred alternative will construct a railroad underpass structure to carry SCRRA trains over Santa Ana Boulevard, depressing the current grade of the roadway and maintaining the railroad profile. Project cost for the preferred alternative has been estimated to be approximately $71.2 million, which includes $43.3 million for construction, $15.6 million for right -of -way acquisition and utility work, and $12.3 million for administration support. Tentatively, the project will be funded by a combination of federal, state, and local funds. 2 RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the project be approved using the Preferred Alternative (underpass structure) and that the project proceed to the design phase. Local agency concurrence for the project has been obtained as the local agency (City of Santa Ana) is the lead agency. 3 BACKGROUND 3.1 Project History This highway -rail at -grade crossing is located along the Los Angeles to San Diego ( LOSSAN) Corridor, which is the primary north /south rail corridor connecting the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as cities in between including some within Orange County. The LOSSAN Corridor is owned by OCTA, with Metrolink commuter rail service maintained and operated by the SCRRA. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railway, the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR), and Amtrak all have been granted user rights by OCTA. Because it is the primary north /south rail corridor, the LOSSAN Corridor is becoming increasingly burdened due to the demand of commuter rail and freight rail, operations. OCTA recently completed construction of a project for the purpose of increasing the capacity of the corridor, the Metrolink Service Expansion Project (MSEP). The MSEP will increase capacity to accommodate OCTA's planned expansion of commuter rail operations, targeting a 30 minute headway resulting in rail service at each station within the corridor every 30 minutes for commuter rail service within the next couple of years. In addition, due to the increase in train movements resulting from the expansion of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, freight service has also increased. Finally, increased development, and accompanying traffic has increased delay at the existing highway -rail crossing. OCTA has embarked on an ambitious program, which began in 2009 to grade separate 13 at -grade highway -rail crossings within Orange County. The first group of those, three are PROJECT REPORT EQUIVALENT 19E -12 3