Commuter Rail Line Passes 2 Milestones, Hits 1 Snag

Commuter rail officials passed two milestones Wednesday, gaining direct rail access into Los Angeles’ Union Station and to Riverside, but attempts to acquire most of the proposed 412-mile rail network were threatened by an angry exchange with another railroad.

The Los Angeles County Transportation Commission, representing a five-county commuter rail authority, agreed to pay $17 million for four miles of Union Pacific Railroad track along the Los Angeles River, assuring commuter trains direct access to the station. Also included is the right to run trains on 56 miles of Union Pacific track between Los Angeles and Riverside.

Commission officials said the agreement gives them an advantage in negotiating with Santa Fe Railroad, which wants $1.3 billion for 310 miles of track. Until Wednesday, Santa Fe also controlled access to the station.

“We can’t be held hostage by the Santa Fe now,” said Richard Stanger, manager of commuter rail for LACTC, which has offered $300 million for the Santa Fe property. “The leverage they had over us has been lessened by this (Union Pacific deal).”

A Santa Fe representative discounted that deal as “a small fraction of what is necessary” for the entire commuter-rail network, which is envisioned as ultimately stretching from the Santa Clarita Valley to San Diego and from Oxnard to San Bernardino.

“Santa Fe supports commuter rail in Southern California,” said the representative, asking not to be named because he will represent the railroad when talks with LACTC resume Aug. 15. “But we hasten to add that (the Union Pacific property) is a small part of the entire system, of which Santa Fe property remains the anchor.”

Santa Fe’s measured response to the Union Pacific deal contrasted with remarks made earlier in the day by Chairman Robert D. Krebs. Stung by LACTC claims that Santa Fe is not negotiating in good faith, Krebs accused the transit agency of trying to make his railroad a scapegoat for its own errors in trying to rush commuter service.

In a letter sent Wednesday to 24 California congressmen, Krebs said commuter-rail officials put “a very expensive cart before the horse”--buying trains and setting a start date before acquiring necessary track rights--and are now trying to shift the blame.

The congressmen, at the request of LACTC, had sent Krebs a letter on Monday strongly urging him to negotiate fairly.