It’s Wise to Move Slowly on Rail Decision : * Fullerton-Irvine Transit Line Could Cost $2 Billion to Build, Millions to Operate

The sense of romance surrounding rail travel always was obvious on long-distance trains with melodious names like “20th Century Limited” or “City of New Orleans.” Even on Amtrak trains from San Juan Capistrano to Los Angeles there is a feeling you do not get in a car or on a bus.

But there are more practical parts of train travel, too, such as conductors’ salaries and the cost of the iron and steel for the track and the cars. The financial questions surrounding the possibility of new urban train service are a key concern for the Orange County Transportation Authority, which fortunately has resisted getting carried away with the romance of the rails.

The OCTA this month approved a study of a proposed transit corridor between Fullerton and Irvine. The corridor is 28 miles long and six miles wide, and the study should help decide if it would be best served by rail, bus or nothing at all. OCTA officials estimated that a rail transit system in the corridor could cost $2 billion, a hefty price.

The authority has collected about $340 million for urban rail travel from the proceeds of a half-cent sales tax increase approved by county voters in 1990. But there is no need to spend that money cavalierly. If the rail corridor does not pencil out, don’t build it.

County residents wisely have asked to see the price tag on a new mass-transit system. A recent telephone survey of 600 registered voters found that 71% favored construction of a Fullerton-Irvine rail line. However, when they were told the line could cost from $1.4 billion to $2.1 billion to build, and $10 million to $15 million a year to operate, there was a steep drop to 49% in the percentage of those favoring the project. Another 39% disapproved the line at that cost, and 12% had no opinion.

Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez, the OCTA board chairman, registered the right note in suggesting that officials “move ahead cautiously” with the study. The research is necessary to apply for federal funding if a rail line is considered the best option. The study is likely to begin in August and take about two years to finish. Local officials will not know if the federal government approves the project until after the research is done.

Supervisor Roger R. Stanton also had good suggestions for future survey questions, including how many people might use rail for daily commutes and how many simply would switch from buses to trains. A new urban rail line is far in the future, if it comes at all, but OCTA is off to a good, if appropriately cautious start.