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EXHIBIT 2 <br /> Santa Ana Blvd. Grade Separation <br /> 1 INTRODUCTION <br /> The City of Santa Ana (City) and Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA), in cooperation <br /> with Caltrans and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), propose to grade separate the <br /> current at-grade crossing of Santa Ana Boulevard with the Southern California Regional Rail <br /> Authority (SCRRA) double tracks. The project objective is to eliminate the at-grade crossing of <br /> the railroad traffic and the vehicular traffic; improve safety at the crossing for pedestrians, <br /> bicyclists and motorists; provide unimpeded access for emergency responders; and, enhance <br /> traffic operations and reduce existing traffic congestion and delay. <br /> Both an overhead alternative and an underpass alternative were considered. The overhead <br /> alternative was deemed non-viable because of concerns and opposition expressed by members <br /> of an adjacent neighborhood. A No-Build Alternative was not considered, with the exception of <br /> within the traffic studies discussed later in this report, as it does not meet the project objective. <br /> The preferred alternative will construct a railroad underpass structure to carry SCRRA trains over <br /> Santa Ana Boulevard, depressing the current grade of the roadway and maintaining the railroad <br /> profile. Project cost for the preferred alternative has been estimated to be approximately $73.3 <br /> million, which includes $45 million for construction, $15.6 million for right-of-way acquisition, and <br /> $12.7 million for administration support. Tentatively, the project will be funded by a combination <br /> of federal, state, and local funds. <br /> 2 RECOMMENDATION <br /> It is recommended that the project be approved using the Preferred Alternative (underpass <br /> structure) and that the project proceed to the design phase. Local agency concurrence for the <br /> project has been obtained as the local agency (City of Santa Ana) is the lead agency. <br /> 3 BACKGROUND <br /> 3.1 Project History <br /> This highway-rail at-grade crossing is located along the Los Angeles to San Diego <br /> (LOSSAN) Corridor, which is the primary north/south rail corridor connecting the cities of <br /> Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as cities in between including some within Orange <br /> County. The LOSSAN Corridor is owned by OCTA, with Metrolink commuter rail service <br /> maintained and operated by the SCRRA. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) <br /> Railway, the Union Pacific Railroad (UPRR), and Amtrak all have been granted user rights <br /> by OCTA. <br /> Because it is the primary north/south rail corridor, the LOSSAN Corridor is becoming <br /> increasingly burdened due to the demand of commuter rail and freight rail, operations. <br /> OCTA recently completed construction of a project for the purpose of increasing the <br /> capacity of the corridor, the Metrolink Service Expansion Project (MSEP). The MSEP will <br /> increase capacity to accommodate OCTA's planned expansion of commuter rail operations, <br /> targeting a 30 minute headway resulting in rail service at each station within the corridor <br /> every 30 minutes for commuter rail service within the next couple of years. In addition, due <br /> to the increase in train movements resulting from the expansion of the Ports of Los Angeles <br /> and Long Beach, freight service has also increased. Finally, increased development, and <br /> accompanying traffic has increased delay at the existing highway-rail crossing. <br /> OCTA has embarked on an ambitious program, which began in 2009 to grade separate 13 <br /> at-grade highway-rail crossings within Orange County. The first group of those, three are <br /> PROJECT REPORT EQUIVALENT 3 <br />