09231996 Regular Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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136 Regular Meeting September 23, 1996 Page 3 Transportation, Capitol Metro, VIA Public Transit and the San Marcos Transit looking at the growing need for transportation mobility enhancement in the area. This is part of an overall program which includes expanding IH35 to six lanes from Austin to San Antonio, construction of the new Highway 130 and this commuter rail proposal. This would allow all the stakeholders to have a seat at the table. There will be no taxing authority, and any financial mechanisms would be through revenue bonds or notes. All the counties and cities along the Corridor have already passed Resolutions supporting this. The legislation was developed through Senators Wentworth and Barrientos' office. A feasibility study has been funded by San Antonio (25%), Austin (25%) and a match from the Department of Transportation in an amount up to $500,000.00. TAMU is doing an origin and destination study of commuters on IH35, what the commuting patterns are and who the commuters are. A small segment of that study' was a preliminary look at Union Pacific Railroad lines' track conditions and basic upgrades needed to make it feasible as a commuter line. Mayor Moore asked what the opinion is of the Corridor Council regarding the Texas Eagle (Amtrak) eliminating service in our area because of perceived lack of ridership. Mr. Shaw stated they have worked with Union Pacific and Amtrak for two years on this issue. Amtrak is interested in' operating the commuter rail and nationwide are divesting themselves of nonprofitable operations, and at the same time are beginning to operate commuter rail services. Union Pacific and Amtrak are both competing to operate this kind of facility. Mayor Moore stated this community wants the rail tracks moved out of the City and placed along Highway 130, and Mr. Shaw stated part of the Corridor study does include a rail component, and Union Pacific is very interested in moving their freight rail off the existing line. Mr. Shaw stated there are 27 crossings in San Marcos and 187 between San Antonio and Austin. Union Pacific is running 90% capacity on this line and is experiencing 8% growth annually, which is NAFTA driven. Union Pacific is excited about moving into-the new Corridor because they think it will meet their capacity needs, which would free up this line for commuter rail. Mr. Hart asked why would the governmental entities be asked to pass a Resolution in support of something prior to completion of a feasibility study? Mr. Shaw stated they were working with several groups in Washington now to move forward with the ISTEA legislation bill, which is on the table. The write-up of this bill will be in April, 1997 and voted on in October, 1997, which will provide $150-300 billion, and we need to show the Corridor support at the State level to make this project move forward. Mr. Shaw stated the feasibility study will show if the freight rail or commuter rail is feasible today, or five or ten years down the road. What drives this is looking at the population growth of our area and the increase of traffic on IH35. Mr. Hart stated it seems premature to support this when the feasibility study has not been completed, and Mr. Shaw stated they want the Council to look at the creation of the District as an operating vehicle should this project move forward. Mr. Shaw stated the study would begin in February, 1997 and take six to nine months to complete, and at the same time we can be moving forward with the lobbying effort in Washington for ISTEA funding, not only for the commuter rail, but for enhancements to IH35 and for the State Highway 130 project. They are trying to present at the federal level a unified regional approach to our transportation issues and problems in the area. Mr. Hart feels this is why taxpayers have lost faith in governmental entities because of making advance decisions without the proper information. Mr. Shaw stated the real issue is whether the commuter rail will be feasible in 1997, 2000 or 2010. At some point with the population growth and the impact of NAFTA (currently 72,000 trucks a month crossing the border at Laredo, and the trade with Mexico is projected to double by the year 2000 and double again by 2010). We have to look at other options, and commuter rail is one of those options. NAFTA traffic is driving both highway truck traffic and additional rail traffic through multi-modal operations. The impact will be on freight as well as the highway. Ms. Hughson asked if commuter rail would use one or both tracks through San Marcos. Mr. Shaw stated only part of the City is double-tracked. There are passing tracks in several locations which would allow operation of commuter rail in conjunction with freight rail. Ms. Hughson