NEWS RELEASE: California High-Speed Rail Authority Releases Draft Environmental Document for First Segment into Los Angeles County

February 25 2020

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California High-Speed Rail Authority is releasing the first Draft Environmental Document for a significant project section into Los Angeles County. The document, which covers the 80-mile stretch of the project from Bakersfield to Palmdale, will be open for public comment starting on Friday, February 28th.

The Bakersfield to Palmdale Project Section will provide a connection from the Central Valley to the Antelope Valley and Los Angeles County, closing the existing passenger rail gap between Northern and Southern California through the Tehachapi Mountains, as well as providing new opportunities for economic development and revitalization in the cities along this corridor.

The approximately 80-mile project section will travel through or near the communities of Bakersfield, Edison, Tehachapi, Rosamond, Lancaster and Palmdale with stations in Bakersfield and Palmdale. The approved Bakersfield Station and the proposed Palmdale Station would maximize ridership, work in coordination with of local land use planning and provide multi-modal transportation options, including potential connection with Brightline Trains in Palmdale.

With the release of this Bakersfield to Palmdale Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS), the Authority remains on track to complete environmental clearance for the full Phase 1 system by the federally mandated 2022 deadline. From Friday, February 28, 2020 through Friday, April 13, 2020, the Bakersfield to Palmdale Project Section Draft EIR/EIS is available for a 45-day CEQA and NEPA review and public comment period.

In conjunction with the public review period for the document, the Authority will hold a public hearing to take public comment. Comments received regarding environmental issues will be reviewed and responded to as required by law. The final EIR/EIS document for Bakersfield to Palmdale will be issued in 2021.

Public Hearing is scheduled on:

April 9, 2020, 3-8 p.m.
Sgt. Steve Owen Memorial Park
Stanley Kleiner Activity Building
43063 North 10th St. West
Lancaster, CA 93534

Public meetings are scheduled on:

The Authority is issuing this document as lead agency under CEQA, and also under NEPA pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 327 and a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) effective as of July 23, 2019, between the State of California and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) under a program commonly known as NEPA assignment (the MOU assigned FRA’s NEPA responsibilities for the project to the State of California). After the comment period closes on April 13, 2020 and the comments received have been evaluated, staff will prepare and issue the Final EIR/EIS document and present it to the Board to consider certification and project approval under CEQA and NEPA.

There are several ways to submit a comment regarding the Draft EIR/EIS for the Bakersfield to Palmdale Project Section including:

• At one of the four meetings detailed above
• Online via the Authority’s website (www.hsr.ca.gov)
• Via email at Bakersfield_palmdal@hsr.ca.gov with the subject line “Bakersfield to Palmdale Draft EIR/EIS Comment”
• Via mail at the address below:
  Attn: Bakersfield to Palmdale: Draft EIR/EIS
  California High-Speed Rail Authority
  770 L Street, Suite 620 MS-1
  Sacramento, CA 95814

To view the contents of the Draft EIR/EIS, please visit our website starting February 28, 2020: www.hsr.ca.gov

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