SACRAMENTO (AP)

Valley Press Staff Writer Lisa Wahla Howard contributed to this article.

November 4, 2005

High-speed rail clears another hurdle

SACRAMENTO (AP) - California's high-speed rail board approved an environmental impact report Wednesday for the 700-mile project that will run through the Antelope Valley, moving it a step closer to reality. The 6-0 vote clears the way for more detailed environmental reviews regarding specific routes and allows the board to begin buying right-of-way if it gets funding, said Mehdi Morshed, the board's executive director.

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The California High-Speed Rail Authority is planning a system that would link Sacramento, San Francisco, Fresno, Los Angeles and San Diego with trains running at speeds of up to 220 mph. Earlier this year, the board agreed with Palmdale leaders to align the Bakersfield-to-Los Angeles section through the Antelope Valley rather than along Interstate 5.

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The environmental impact report approved Wednesday outlines the broad environmental effects created by the trains and how the board proposes to address them. It also touts high-speed rail as less costly, more energy efficient and less environmentally damaging than expanding highways and increasing air travel.

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The more detailed review coming in the future will decide where the stations should be, Biery said. Possibilities in Palmdale include the airport and the transportation center, with the train likely built along the existing Union Pacific rail line, she said. The route proposed by the board would run through the Central Valley from Sacramento to Bakersfield, then cut through the Tehachapi Mountains to Palmdale before heading to Los Angeles, Riverside and San Diego.

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"With the (environmental document) certified, we're a billion steps ahead of Northern California," Biery said. "If the project gets funded soon with the bond and environmental work continues, we could see construction begin in Southern California sooner than in Northern California."