CHSRA has now released details of the proposed “shared-use” of the Caltrain ROW for commuter and high-speed trains — and it is looking more and more that Caltrain is giving away the store.
Most news reporting has focused on CHSRA taking over express service from Caltrain. The highly lucrative Baby Bullet service would be eliminated. That is sure to have huge negative impact on Caltrain’s balance sheet, and yet staff is strangely claiming the opposite — that the scheme would improve finances!
But far worse, the proposed operating agreement would leave Caltrain insufficient platform space at the downtown Transbay Terminal. Buried deep, deep on page 47 of “Appendix K” — a report which has never been discussed at public hearing — is the proposed Caltrain schedule with DTX and electrification. For the commute hour periods, it shows less than half trains even reaching the Terminal. The majority would still terminate at 4th St..
