Corpus Christi — Streetcar Delay

Rail Transit Online, April 2005

A city council decision on whether to build the proposed 2.4-mi. (3.86 km) downtown streetcar has been delayed while the Regional Transportation Authority analyzes an FTA evaluation of the project and attempts to reduce the estimated $32.4-million price tag.  A final route was selected last summer and an environmental assessment was submitted to the FTA, which local officials are hoping will provide most of the funding.  The tracks would form a loop through downtown, then head north on Water Street past Interstate 37 before jogging east to Shoreline Boulevard.  The rails would then turn north along the sea wall to the convention center and then west to terminate at a proposed new sports stadium.  The council was to vote on the project during March, prior to the April 2 election, but RTA General Manager Ricardo Sanchez requested a delay while he reviews FTA comments on the environmental report and develops a financial plan for the project.  Sanchez is also evaluating cost saving suggestions made by consultants from the Goodman Corporation that include substituting four diesel-electric hybrid-powered trolleys for an all-electric system and eliminating the leg to City Hall, saving about $12 million.  “This cost reduction would not only make the project more fundable in the view of the FTA, but also significantly reduce the non-federal funding share for the project,” said Sanchez in a letter to Mayor Loyd Neal.  Meanwhile, the local Metropolitan Planning Organization has raised new issues concerning planned infrastructure improvements that could impact the trolley proposal.