NEWS RELEASE: California High-Speed Rail Releases Final Environmental Studies to Bring Service to Los Angeles

November 5, 2021

LOS ANGELES – The California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) today released the Final Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (Final EIR/EIS) for the approximately 14-mile Burbank to Los Angeles Project Section in Southern California, moving the Authority one step closer to approving its fourth environmental document in two years.

The document will be presented to the Authority’s Board of Directors for consideration during a two-day board meeting January 19 and 20, in conjunction with considering approval of the Burbank to Los Angeles Project Section preferred alternative (HSR Build Alternative).

If approved, the Burbank to Los Angeles Project Section will be the second high-speed rail segment in Southern California to be environmentally cleared, and it will be the first in the Los Angeles Basin. This milestone moves the project section closer to being “shovel ready” for when preconstruction and construction funding become available.

“Today’s release of the environmental document underscores the statewide nature of this project. While we advance construction in the Central Valley, we continue our march to environmentally clear all 500 miles between San Francisco and the Los Angeles/Anaheim area,” said Authority CEO Brian Kelly. “This Los Angeles rail corridor will connect the Hollywood Burbank Airport and Los Angeles Union Station – two key multimodal transportation hubs – providing future passengers clean, electrified high-speed rail infrastructure that will deliver sustainable, reliable and accessible transportation for generations to come.”

In May 2020, the Authority released the Draft EIR/EIS for public review. The Authority serves as lead agency under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Authority has since responded to comments received during the public review period, and these responses are documented in the Final EIR/EIS. The Burbank to Los Angeles Project Section proposes to connect the high-speed rail system from a new Hollywood Burbank Airport Station to the existing Los Angeles Union Station, key multimodal hubs for Southern California.

The proposed HSR Build Alternative in this project section will use existing railroad right-of-way adjacent to the Los Angeles River, through the cities of Burbank, Glendale and Los Angeles, and will decrease rail congestion and increase mobility in the corridor. The Authority has committed to and will continue investing in modernizing and improving rail infrastructure in Southern California as this investment brings benefits to the region.

Consideration of the Burbank to Los Angeles Project Section Final EIR/EIS follows the Authority Board’s approval of the Bakersfield to Palmdale Project Section in August 2021, the first approved high-speed rail project section in the Southern California region. These actions set the course for full environmental clearance and approval of the high-speed rail project’s 500-mile Phase 1 alignment from San Francisco to Los Angeles/Anaheim.

The Final EIR/EIS can be found on the Authority’s website, www.hsr.ca.gov. In addition to the website, printed and/or electronic copies of the Final EIR/EIS, as well as the previously published Draft EIR/EIS, are available at the following public libraries during operating hours:

Burbank

• Buena Vista Branch Library, 300 N Buena Vista Street
• Northwest Branch Library, 3323 W Victory Boulevard
• Burbank Central Library, 110 N Glenoaks Boulevard

Glendale 

• Grandview Library, 1535 Fifth Street
• Pacific Park and Community Center, 501 S Pacific Avenue
• Glendale Central Library, 222 E Harvard Street

Los Angeles 

• Atwater Village Branch Library, 3379 Glendale Boulevard
• Chinatown Branch Library, 639 N Hill Street
• Cypress Park Branch Library, 1150 Cypress Avenue
• Lincoln Heights Branch Library, 2530 Workman Street
• Little Tokyo Branch Library, 203 S Los Angeles Street

Printed and/or electronic copies of the Burbank to Los Angeles Final EIR/EIS, along with electronic copies of the previously published environmental documents and associated technical reports, are also available for review during business hours at the Authority’s office at 770 L Street, Suite 620 MS-1, Sacramento; and by appointment at the Authority’s Southern California Regional Office at 355 S. Grand Avenue, Suite 2050, Los Angeles. To make an appointment to view the documents, please call (323) 610-2819.

The Authority is currently under construction along 119 miles in California’s Central Valley at more than two dozen job sites. The project averages nearly 1,000 workers daily. For more on construction visit: www.buildhsr.com.

You can see this news release in Spanish here.