19E - SANTA ANA GRADE SEPARATION PROJECT

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Santa Ana Blvd. Grade Separation currently under construction and four others are scheduled to go to construction by 2014. This project is part of the next group of projects to advance. The City nominated this project with the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) for the 2012 -2013 Grade Separation Priority List and received a ranking of xxx. 3.2 Community Interaction A Project Development Team (PDT) was identified to foster collaborative communications among the stakeholders which includes representatives from OCTA, Caltrans, and City. The representatives have actively participated in the engineering and environmental studies leading up to the development of this Project Report Equivalent A public informational meeting was held on December 18, 2013, in the City of Santa Ana. The preferred alternative and technical studies were presented to approximately 33 attendees representing the local community. Representatives from OCTA, Caltrans, City of Santa Ana, AECOM, and ICF International were present to address questions from the general public. In general, the public expressed supportfor the project. 3.3 Existing Facility Santa Ana Boulevard is listed in the City's General Plan as a 6 -Lane Primary Arterial, which is defined as a roadway with 100 feet of right -of -way width and includes 3 traffic lanes for a total of 35 feet of traveled way in each direction, a 14 -foot median, and 8 -foot parkways. Currently, Santa Ana Boulevard is a six -lane street with left turn pockets located in each direction at the intersections with Santiago Street and the I -5 southbound on and off ramps. The right of way along Santa Ana Boulevard is 104 feet in width. The railroad right -of -way is owned by OCTA and the tracks are maintained by SCRRA. In addition, Amtrack commuter trains as well as freight rail service provided by BNSF have licenses with OCTA for use of the tracks. The land use surrounding the project site varies and includes industrial uses in the northerly quadrant; various industrial uses, including parts of the Orange County maintenance yard and a junkyard in the easterly quadrant; the Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center (SARTC) in the southerly quadrant; and, single - family dwellings in the westerly quadrant. 4 PURPOSE AND NEED 4.1 Need Increased traffic on Santa Ana Boulevard and increased train movements on the LOSSAN line have resulted in the increase of delays at the existing highway -rail crossing of Santa Ana Boulevard and the SCRRA double- track. These delays have not only affected the traveling public, but also have impacted access by emergency vehicles. This is compounded by the fact that there is currently only one other grade separation located at 1't Street, within the city limits, increasing the importance to the City's traffic circulation as the project will provide another unimpeded access across the railroad. Also, safety at the crossing is a major concern. Since 1977, there have been four separate accidents at this crossing, averaging about one every eight years. These four accidents are classified as follows: one involved an Atchison Topeka Santa Fe (ATSF) train striking a vehicle stopped on the tracks; two others involved a motorist driving around the gates and being struck by an ATSF train; and one involved an AMTRAK train hitting a pedestrian walking on the tracks. Please see Section 4.3.1, Accident Analysis - Vehicle /Train, of this PROJECT REPORT EQUIVALENT 19E -13 4