Agricultural Working Group

Overview: 

California’s HST System would provide intercity, high-speed service on more than 800 miles of track, connecting the major population centers of Sacramento, the San Francisco Bay Area, the Central Valley, Los Angeles, the Inland Empire, Orange County, and San Diego. It would use state-of-the-art, electrically powered, steel-wheel-on-steel-rail technology to operate trains at up to 220 miles per hour over a fully grade-separated, dedicated track, using advanced safety, signaling, and automated train-control systems. The proposed HST System would address California’s current intercity transportation system, including in the Central Valley, which cannot meet existing and future travel demands and otherwise result in transportation system congestion leading to deteriorating air quality, reduced reliability, and increased travel times.

Three segments of the proposed High-Speed Train (HST) system will travel through 173 miles of the San Joaquin Valley – the San Jose to Merced section, Merced to Fresno section, and the Fresno to Bakersfield section. Potential route alignments and station locations are being evaluated through an environmental review process under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

Known for its vast agriculture, the San Joaquin Valley has specific issues that need to be addressed and resolved with the input and expertise of those who know the industry.

Representatives on the Agricultural Working Group are specialists and contribute to improved information sharing and decision-making by the Authority on issues related to the agricultural industry and the High-Speed Train. This working group comprises of university, agency, and agri-business representatives.

The Agricultural Working Group is being formed to assist the Authority in addressing the key issues raised by the agricultural community. The goals of the Agriculture Working Group are to:

Goals:  

                1. Refine the list of issues and concerns within the agricultural industry; 

                2. Use the agricultural expertise of the resource specialists to enhance the EIR/EIS                     process  and answer potential agricultural impacts;                 

                3. Use resource specialists to develop mitigation measures and guidance guidelines to                     minimize agricultural impacts during construction, implementation and operation of the                     high‐speed rail project