Passenger Trains > San Jose CA high hopes

Rail fans have high hopes for San Jose station
By GARY RICHARDS
MediaNews
Updated: 11/22/2008 01:45:39 AM PST


Click photo to enlargeCarl Guardino, left, president and CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership... (PATRICK TEHAN/MediaNews)«12»SAN JOSE'S DIRIDON STATION — Grand Central Station of the West?
Let the comparisons begin.

With voters approving both a sales-tax measure to bring BART to the South Bay and a bond measure to connect California's major cities by high-speed rail, San Jose's sleepy Diridon station is on track for a mind-boggling upgrade.

The tiny station, built in 1935, with its small snack shack, cramped 60s-era restrooms, churchlike pews and just a couple of ticket takers, will be transformed into a multimillion-dollar, state-of-the-art stopping point. Nearly 500 trains could glide into this station each day from seven transit lines — BART, high-speed rail, VTA light rail, Caltrain, Amtrak and the Altamont and Capitol lines.

"It should be on every postcard of San Jose," said Kevin Connolly, a transit planner with the Valley Transportation Authority. "Grand Central has the Pan Am Building and Lexington Avenue, and San Jose needs to be thinking about that scale."

On Friday, BART backers popped open champagne at the station, named for San Jose transit advocate Ron Diridon, to celebrate Measure B's come-from-behind victory at the polls. With only a smattering of late ballots left to be counted, the eighth-of-a-cent sales tax measure now holds a 66.78 approval — well over the two-thirds majority needed to pass. Election officials must certify the results by Dec. 2.

Local dignitaries weren't the only ones rejoicing. Transit rider Ian North imagines a day


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when he can catch BART to Oakland to see the Raiders and Warriors or catch the high-speed train to Los Angeles for his family's annual Thanksgiving reunion.
"It's finally going to bring us up to speed. We'll no longer be in the shadow of San Francisco," said North, 47. "I've waited a long time for it."

He will have to wait at least another 10 years to see all those tracks coming together at 65 Cahill Street. No one can say how much it would cost to transform Diridon, but money from both the $10 billion high-speed rail bond and Measure B could help pay the bill.

"The only place that might rival San Jose could be Los Angeles' Union Station," said Gene Skoropowski, managing director of the Capitol Corridor line.


"Clearly, the potential for San Jose to become the Grand Central of the West is there."


Transit planners are thinking of it as a glitzy, modern airport terminal, perhaps along the lines of San Francisco International, or the new look coming to Mineta San Jose International.They are envisioning high-end restaurants, large ticketing areas, escalators, bright lights and thousands of passengers bustling through from Los Angeles, Sacramento, Stockton, Monterey and throughout the Bay Area.

Steve Aponte, who lives in the recently-built lofts across the tracks, envisions more congestion— but not necessarily the bad kind.

"A lot of people live here because ... they can come here on a train or on a bus and now even more so," said Aponte, 25.

A planning study could be under way by April, looking at terminal improvements and parking issues. The lots at Diridon already fill up early each morning with cars, and finding hundreds of more parking spots will be critical. The VTA also plans on expanding bus service to Diridon, with a number of express routes feeding into the station.

The look will be different, much different.

"In order to be mentioned in the same breath as Grand Central, I think we have to develop iconic architecture that not just houses transportation but announces our city and region to everyone who visits as a great place with a global stature," Connolly said.

If the BART extension remains on track, it will run 133 trains to San Jose each day by the time the line opens in 2018. Caltrain hopes to run 120 trains through here in 10 more years. There are 116 light-rail trains a day that now roll into Diridon. As many as 90 high-speed trains are planned. Add in another 50 ACE, Amtrak and Capitol Corridor on remaining lines, and there will be passengers hurrying from one train line to another throughout the station.

And that explains the champagne corks popping Friday in front of the old station — and a lot of busy days ahead for officials like Ben Tripousis, the transportation systems manager with San Jose's Department of Transportation.

"We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity," he said, "to develop a transportation facility that is comparable to the best in the world."



Mercury News staff writer Sandra Gonzales contributed to this report.

Contact Gary Richards at grichardsmercurynews.com or (408) 920-5335.

(I do believe that the San Jose people have been taking lessons from the dope smokers of Transportation Agency of Monterey County) :-)
C.

Carol Voss
Bakersfield, CA

CarolVoss Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> And that explains the champagne corks popping
> Friday in front of the old station — and a lot
> of busy days ahead for officials like Ben
> Tripousis, the transportation systems manager with
> San Jose's Department of Transportation.
>
> "We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity," he
> said, "to develop a transportation facility that
> is comparable to the best in the world."
>
> Mercury News staff writer Sandra Gonzales
> contributed to this report.
>
> (I do believe that the San Jose people have been
> taking lessons from the dope smokers of
> Transportation Agency of Monterey County) :-)
> C.

I read the paper version of the article. People sometimes take it for granted that getting the votes is just the first step, not the finish line for large infrastructure projects. "A lot of busy days ahead" indeed.

I'll miss the casual and charming Diridon Station, as I've been using it often for ACE, Caltrain, Capitol Corridor, Thruway Buses, and VTA Light Rail. I'm looking forward to the change, and won't be mind-boggled by it one bit.

Maybe HSR can run out of money just when they get to San Jose, that would save a few bucks right there. A walk to the Shark Tank may be all that's needed.

With that kind of accessibility by public transit, I can't help but think one heck of a lot of development is going to take place in downtown San Jose.

This is what more major cities needs to do. Central hubs are the best way for integrated networks... Very "European" of SJ to do this

They'll need one heck of a land grab for all of that plus more parking for the shark tank and any new sports facility that materializes. The city already bought the old meat packing property next door, and one would imagine the old KNTV studios must be next.

This is the VTA, of course, so expect them to cry poor within 4 years and ask for another bond or tax hike by the 2012 election cycle.

> With only a smattering of late ballots left to
> be counted, the eighth-of-a-cent sales tax
> measure now holds a 66.78 approval — well
> over the two-thirds majority needed to pass.

Am I missing something with this math? It seems odd to define a 0.11% margin as "well over."

Perhaps the article simply means that the measure has passed by a large enough absolute number of votes that there is little doubt of the outcome. But "well over" seems a bit overstated.

By the same logic, a package of food containing 16.0176 ounces of product could promote itself as containing "well over" the amount of food in a typical 16.0000 ounce package. Or the person six feet and one-twelfth of an inch (6.0069 feet) tall can declare himself "well over" the height of a six-foot-tall person. Or most specifically, it's a margin of 11 more positive votes per 10,000 votes than the minimum needed to pass; instead of the minimum 6667-3333 margin required to pass, the measure achieved a 6678-3322 split per 10,000 votes.

The spin is based on simple majority, 50%.
Some mis-used terms out here include 'mandate' and the concept of refusing (or discriminating againest) an individuals Vote, because someone else voted in the opposite. Something is clearly out of whack.

> San Jose's sleepy Diridon station is on
> track for a mind-boggling upgrade.

I use the station often and it's far from sleepy. Salinas Amtrak station, now that's sleepy.


> The tiny station, built in 1935, with its small
> snack shack, cramped 60s-era restrooms, churchlike
> pews and just a couple of ticket takers, will be
> transformed into a multimillion-dollar,
> state-of-the-art stopping point.

The restrooms are not "cramped", at least there *are* restrooms, and they're suprisingly clean. Also, at LAUS and even CUS I only see a few "ticket takers" there also. (We know they meant ticket clerks. You can buy tickets from the machine nowadays though anyhow.)


> "It should be on every postcard of San Jose," said
> Kevin Connolly, a transit planner with the Valley
> Transportation Authority. "Grand Central has the
> Pan Am Building and Lexington Avenue, and San Jose
> needs to be thinking about that scale."


Gee, most people think of San Jose as Yahoo, Google, Ebay, etc.


> On Friday, BART backers popped open champagne at
> the station, named for San Jose transit advocate
> Ron Diridon, to celebrate Measure B's
> come-from-behind victory at the polls. With only a
> smattering of late ballots left to be counted, the
> eighth-of-a-cent sales tax measure now holds a
> 66.78 approval — well over the two-thirds
> majority needed to pass. Election officials must
> certify the results by Dec. 2.


Does our tax money finance their bottles of champagne too? They're all gettin' drunk at our expense. And yeah, "well over the two-thirds majority needed"? Hardly.


> Local dignitaries weren't the only ones rejoicing.
> Transit rider Ian North imagines a day
> when he can catch BART to Oakland to see the
> Raiders and Warriors


If the Capitol Corridor were less expensive than it is now, and ran more frequently and later (a la Caltrain), he could ride that. And that costs far less to operate than BART


> "It's finally going to bring us up to speed. We'll
> no longer be in the shadow of San Francisco," said
> North, 47. "I've waited a long time for it."


We are not in the shadow of anybody. If you want to live in San Francsico so bad so you can ride BART, then move there.


> He will have to wait at least another 10 years to
> see all those tracks coming together at 65 Cahill
> Street.


Probably longer. Like never in his life time.


> "The only place that might rival San Jose could be
> Los Angeles' Union Station," said Gene
> Skoropowski, managing director of the Capitol
> Corridor line.


Again, I only see two or three ticket clerks working there usually.


> Transit planners are thinking of it as a glitzy,
> modern airport terminal, perhaps along the lines
> of San Francisco International, or the new look
> coming to Mineta San Jose International.They are
> envisioning high-end restaurants, large ticketing
> areas, escalators, bright lights and thousands of
> passengers bustling through from Los Angeles,
> Sacramento, Stockton, Monterey and throughout the
> Bay Area.


Glitzy? The station bums are gonna love it! They'll be livin' at the St. Francis now.


> Steve Aponte, who lives in the recently-built
> lofts across the tracks, envisions more
> congestion— but not necessarily the bad kind.
>
> "A lot of people live here because ... they can
> come here on a train or on a bus and now even more
> so," said Aponte, 25.


As that should be the reason you bought next to the train station. Also see the massive growth of apartments and condos near the Dublin/Pleasanton BART station.


> A planning study could be under way by April,
> looking at terminal improvements and parking
> issues. The lots at Diridon already fill up early
> each morning with cars, and finding hundreds of
> more parking spots will be critical.
> The look will be different, much different.

There are plenty of spots still available throughout the day. The North East lot is almost empty.

> If the BART extension remains on track, it will
> run 133 trains to San Jose each day by the time
> the line opens in 2018. Caltrain hopes to run 120
> trains through here in 10 more years. There are
> 116 light-rail trains a day that now roll into
> Diridon. As many as 90 high-speed trains are
> planned. Add in another 50 ACE, Amtrak and Capitol
> Corridor on remaining lines, and there will be
> passengers hurrying from one train line to another
> throughout the station.

Wow, will there be THAT many people traveling to San Jose station as their END POINT?


> And that explains the champagne corks popping
> Friday in front of the old station — and a lot
> of busy days ahead for officials like Ben
> Tripousis, the transportation systems manager with
> San Jose's Department of Transportation.


"But today, I enjoyed my taxpayer purchased glass of champagne, and I'm thankful I have job security."


> (I do believe that the San Jose people have been
> taking lessons from the dope smokers of
> Transportation Agency of Monterey County) :-)
> C.


I agree with you Carol!

My problem with all this vision of grandeur is still the name of the station- Diridon Station. It just does not mean anything to anybody same as the Mineta Airport. This naming seems to be a fetish in the Bay Area including the little Stockton station also named after some local pol.

Now that I have criticised, I would suggest that the grand railroad station at 4th and Townsend Sts. in San Francisco, be renamed the Russell-Biaggini Station to honor those who moved the SP out of the magnificent, 3rd and Townsend Sts Station.

Perhaps the San Jose consultants can come up with a better idea.

Bob, (Retired Military Policeman at the old SP Station.)

stone23 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> My problem with all this vision of grandeur is
> still the name of the station- Diridon Station. It
> just does not mean anything to anybody same as the
> Mineta Airport. This naming seems to be a fetish
> in the Bay Area including the little Stockton
> station also named after some local pol.
>
> Now that I have criticised, I would suggest that
> the grand railroad station at 4th and Townsend
> Sts. in San Francisco, be renamed the
> Russell-Biaggini Station to honor those who moved
> the SP out of the magnificent, 3rd and Townsend
> Sts Station.
>
> Perhaps the San Jose consultants can come up with
> a better idea.
>
> Bob, (Retired Military Policeman at the old SP
> Station.)


Most of the folks I know who are aware of the history usually call it "Cahill Station". I knew one old hogger who still called it the "narrow gauge station", even though it was built well after the South Pacific Coast was eliminated. But, it does sit on the old SPC depot site.

I certainly hope, if this grand terminal plan does come to pass, the they do not destroy the old station. Except for some homes, San Jose has done a fantastic job of destroying much of its old architecture and significant buildings. A truly visionary architect or designer could find a way to create a new transit hub while working around and with the station building.

Z

zephyrus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A truly
> visionary architect or designer could find a way
> to create a new transit hub while working around
> and with the station building.

"Visionary" architecture in San Jose equates to drab bare metal exteriors and goofy neon light arrays stolen out of the '80s.

I suspect the parking lots across the street will somehow become part of any new structure as more efficient parking than single level paved lots will be needed. I suppose they could also build over the tracks somehow.

Someone wondered if all those people were going to go to San Jose. Not necessarily, but SJ will be the hub in the spokes of the system, where it will split and go to either San Francisco or up the East Bay to Oakland and on Sacramento. Pretty much everything will go through SJ.

And it would be nice to keep the existing station in the new design somehow. It is in surprisingly good shape, and clean, given the traffic that goes through it even now.

Even though SJ is larger than San Francisco, it has a well deserved inferiority complex with respect to its cousin to the north, so the "shadow" line in the article seems accurate to me.

This whole project potentially could boost SJ's economic importance.

For those interested, here's a plan on how BART, a new CAHSR station, and redevelopment will mesh together.

http://www.sjredevelopment.org/PublicationsPlans/DirArena_SDP.pdf

-Jarrett

CarolVoss reported, from MediaNews, in part:
-------------------------------------------------------

> "It's finally going to bring us up to speed. We'll
> no longer be in the shadow of San Francisco," said
> North, 47. "I've waited a long time for it."
>
> "The only place that might rival San Jose could be
> Los Angeles' Union Station," said Gene
> Skoropowski, managing director of the Capitol
> Corridor line.
>
> "Clearly, the potential for San Jose to become the
> Grand Central of the West is there."
>
> Transit planners are thinking of it as a glitzy,
> modern airport terminal, perhaps along the lines
> of San Francisco International, or the new look
> coming to Mineta San Jose International.They are
> envisioning high-end restaurants, large ticketing
> areas, escalators, bright lights and thousands of
> passengers bustling through from Los Angeles,
> Sacramento, Stockton, Monterey and throughout the
> Bay Area.
>
> Steve Aponte, who lives in the recently-built
> lofts across the tracks, envisions more
> congestion— but not necessarily the bad kind.
>
> "A lot of people live here because ... they can
> come here on a train or on a bus and now even more
> so," said Aponte, 25.

Brings to mind the late San Francisco Chronicle pulitzer prize-winning pundit Herb Caen's derisive put-down of San Jose: "Nuevo LA."

billio Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------

> Brings to mind the late San Francisco pundit Herb
> Caen's derisive put-down of San Jose: "Nuevo LA."


Herb nailed it. All the traffic, all the smog, none of the fun.

Cheers,
Harry

On the idea of a lot of new redevelopment for San Jose, how about they make use of the existing redevelopment and pay off the agency's debt first. San Jose has about the highest redevelopment debt of any CA city, around $2 billion. More than one third of the city has been declared a redevelopment zone to pay the increment tax financing. This is all money diverted from schools, libraries, fire departments, etc in the name of fixing blight that didn't exist.

Before you cheer the San Jose redevelopment agency please read http://www.redevelopment.com/norby/toc.htm

PS right on Zephyrus, but you forgot to mention the other Silly-Con valley architecture, pink tilt-up Wal-Mart walls.

Don't forget big property owners like Barry Swenson holding whole blocks ransom in RDA areas. Leave buildings vacant, cry poor in regards to retrofitting, then suckle at the RDA teat when they relent. Everyone is going to get their hands in the pot one way or another.

LAUPT in SJC???? Don't think so!

The plans call for essentially three different structures: HSR, BART (both new) and the existing Diridon Amtrak/CalTrain/ACE/UP conglomeration, but with added platforms. The one unknown here is UP - they have their own way of doing business and couldn't care less about public transit unless it impacts their train movements. Sure, they'll pay lip service and declare that they want to be a partner in this (read between the lines here; "Show us the money!!!") but don't expect roses and violins from Omaha.

There IS a better way to move freight trains through San Jose. Little traffic originates here - when UP closed the Newhall Yard they effectively pulled the plug on anything other than run-through. Rebuild the ex-WP tracks from Milpitas south to the old Williams St. yard, then farther south to tie into the Coast Line north of Curtner Avenue. That would give freight trains a completely different right of way through San Jose and allow total separation of movements. The mistake San Jose made in building homes in the old Williams St. Yard is an issue but can be corrected withe the $$$ HSR brings to the table.