Valley Subway Leg Gets $1.6-Million State Boost

The California Transportation Commission on Thursday appropriated $1.6 million to start work by September on the San Fernando Valley leg of the North Hollywood-to-downtown Metro Rail subway.

Besides that appropriation, earmarked for design work and buying land, the commission unanimously approved a motion saying that it would contribute $37 million of the $74 million to be spent on subway tunneling north of Universal City over the next seven years.

But the transportation commissioners also signaled their intent to place two difficult conditions on release of those funds.

They voted to withhold the money for construction until the City of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission each agree to contribute $18.5 million. Both city and county officials have balked at paying more money for Metro Rail.

Commitment Sought

And the commissioners, who control all state transit spending, indicated during discussion that they would withhold the construction funds until the Southern California Rapid Transit District commits itself to taking Metro Rail all the way to Universal City during the next phase of construction. There might not be enough money to tunnel that far, some officials say.

Even with the conditions, the state commission’s action Thursday brings the RTD within striking distance of complying with a state law that requires the start of construction on the Valley end of the subway within one year of the Sept. 29, 1986, Metro Rail ground breaking downtown.

RTD Assistant General Manager Albert H. Perdon, who attended the commission meeting, expressed guarded optimism that the district can meet the state commission’s requirements and comply with the law.

Earlier Thursday, however, RTD General Manager John Dyer was pessimistic during an appearance before the RTD board. Unless the state construction funds come through, he said, “there is no way we can start construction--certainly no way we can finish. . . . We are going to be unable to comply with the law.”

The author of the law, state Sen. Alan Robbins, D-Van Nuys, a member of the state commission, predicted that Thursday’s action would “stop the dancing around, waiting for someone to start things,” which he said has been the attitude of city, county and state officials toward Valley subway construction.

Robbins and other local officials have long predicted that Metro Rail work in the Valley would be postponed indefinitely unless transit officials were forced by law to start construction.

Despite Robbins’ confidence that the state action will get things moving, city and county officials have indicated extreme reluctance to participate.

City Councilman Michael Woo, who heads the council’s transportation committee, said this week that he had polled his colleagues and “found no sentiment at all for contributing more money to Metro Rail.”

The County Transportation Commission, which is building a network of light-rail lines, has postponed action on contributing to the RTD plan. The commission’s staff on Monday proposed instead that all money earmarked for Valley rail projects be placed in a trust fund until subway tunneling comes close to Universal City.

Although no vote was taken on the trust-fund proposal, which would require repeal of Robbins’ legislation, the county transportation commissioners directed their staff to investigate the plan.

Light-Rail Substitute

Commissioners also recently ordered a study of the possibility of substituting above-ground light rail for the swifter but costlier Metro Rail for the 2.3-mile segment between Universal City and the subway’s northern terminus at Lankershim and Chandler boulevards in North Hollywood.

The $1.6 million appropriated Thursday will complete the design work on 4,500 feet of tunnel between Universal City and the Ventura Freeway, RTD officials said.

A possible sticking point in Thursday’s action was the requirement that, before any construction funds be released, tunneling to Universal City be officially included in Metro Rail’s next phase.

The first phase includes tunneling from downtown to Vermont Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard.

The RTD board is not scheduled to give final approval to the next phase until December, and some officials doubt there will be enough money to tunnel through the Hollywood Hills.

But Perdon said he is confident that, before the September deadline, state commissioners will accept a detailed staff report showing the financial feasibility of tunneling to Universal City and will release the funds.