Like a baby arriving in the midst of a storm and blackout, the Bay Area's newest transit district began its official existence in the midst of political and financial turmoil that could mean difficult times ahead. The Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District (SMART) was formed to take on a daunting missioncreating passenger rail service in a part of the Bay Area which has been ambivalent about rail proposals. Now state financial woes may affect SMART's timetable for putting a funding measure on the ballot for longterm financial support.
Unlike a newborn baby, however, SMART board members are prepared for what is ahead. After a 1997 study of transportation and land use jointly sponsored by the Sonoma County Transportation Authority and Marin County, the two counties formed a Joint Powers Authority and set up the SMART Commission in 1998. Its purpose was to guide the design and implementation of passenger trains in support of transportation and land use patterns to counteract the effects of sprawl and reduce congestion along the Hwy 101 corridor. The commission was replaced in January by the new district created by AB 2224 (Nation), which was signed into law in September 2002. The commission was comprised of two supervisors and three city representatives from each of the two counties. The new district board retains those members and adds two members from the board of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District (GGBHTD).
The addition of the GGBHTD board members signifies a major change between the new district and its predecessor commission. While the commission oversaw planning and acquired funding for the proposed passenger rail, the tracks needed for service are part of the Northwest Pacific Railway (NPR), which extends north through Marin and Sonoma Counties to Eureka. In Marin and Sonoma, the NPR right-of-way and easements needed for SMART service are currently owned by the Northwestern Pacific Railway Authority (NWPRA), a joint powers agency which includes Marin County and Sonoma Counties and GGBHTD. Under the provisions of AB 2224, the NWPRA assets will be transferred to the new rail district, and NWPRA will be dissolved.
Planning is already underway as the new district comes into existence. It includes a detailed Environmental Impact Study and Environmental Impact Report based on a preliminary plan for train service produced last year for the SMART commission. As currently envisioned, SMART service would include passenger rail from Cloverdale to a San Francisco-bound ferry terminal in Marin County. The environmental review process will evaluate three alternative ferry terminal destinations—the current Golden Gate Ferry terminal at Larkspur and two potential sites at San Quentin and Port Sonoma.
Trains could serve up to 14 stations, 9 in Sonoma County and 5 in Marin, running every 30 minutes during peak periods, with up to 12-16 trains per day. Travel time between Santa Rosa and San Rafael is estimated at 55 minutes. Rail service could begin by 2005-2007, with initial ridership projected at 5100 people per day. A bicycle corridor is also proposed on the SMART right-of-way, which parallels Highway 101 for most of the distance.
Consultants have also been hired to work on rail car vehicle design, maintenance facility site selection, and community education and outreach. Under AB 2224, no stations can be built in areas which are currently unincorporated, a response to opponents who fear that rail service could encourage development in currently undeveloped greenbelts. Soon local communities will be involved in conceptual plans for station sites, which are needed to determine the impacts of the proposed station locations. The environmental review will include a concept plan for each station area, with bus and shuttle connection points. The district will consider transit-oriented development policies for designated station sites in the near future.
Capital costs to provide service between Cloverdale and San Rafael are estimated at $200 million to upgrade tracks, build stations, purchase vehicles and build the maintenance facility. Additional costs would be involved to extend service to a ferry terminal. $65 million for capital costs has already been secured from state and federal funding, although some of the state funding may be in jeopardy because of the budget crunch. Operating costs are projected at $9 million per year, with passenger fares for riders between Cloverdale and San Rafael expected to cover over a third of the cost.
At least a portion of the remaining cost of building and operating the system has been envisioned as coming from a dedicated sales tax measure which would need to be approved by voters in both counties. Transportation sales tax measures have failed several times in the two counties, but rail proponents are hopeful that separating rail service from other projects may be a recipe for success. However, the planned timing of the ballot measure, tentatively set for 2004, may suffer from an increase in state sales tax, or conflict with a new tax measure under discussion by Marin County to provide transportation funds for planned projects which may otherwise be delayed by state funding shortfalls.
Rail advocates, as well as the commuters stuck in traffic on Highway 101 next to unused railroad tracks, may see their dream of rail transit delayed by funding problems, but the existence of the new district is a solid step forward toward realizing that dream. SMART provides a focal point for local and regional planning and a unified voice for funding, both of which will be needed to realize the mission of providing rail service to Marin and Sonoma.
Leslie Stewart
For more information: Lillian Hames, Executive Director, SMART, 415-884-3137; http://www.sonomamarintrain.org