Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today cheered Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao’s decision to approve Caltrain’s Peninsula Corridor Electrification Project grant:

“I’m pleased and thankful that Secretary Chao has agreed to sign the long-awaited grant agreement for Caltrain’s Peninsula Corridor Electrification Project. This would have not been possible without the help of the local leaders who pushed for the project and my congressional colleagues who agreed to enact funding.

“Caltrain’s fleet of diesel trains are at the end of their useful life. Now is the time to replace these outdated, dirty diesel trains with a cleaner, modern electric fleet. Almost two decades of planning for this $1.98 billion project hinged upon this grant agreement. For the past three months we’ve waited to hear the status of the grant, while Caltrain was forced to spend roughly $15 million to hold its contractors in place. With this agreement, the project can finally begin.

“This multi-year agreement is a commitment to provide $647 million over the next five years, roughly one-third of the total project cost. I’ll do all I can in the coming years to ensure Congress continues to provide full funding to keep this project moving forward.

“This is exactly the type of infrastructure investment our country needs. Caltrain’s project is now ready to put 10,000 people to work across the country and bring to fruition a badly needed transportation improvement that enjoys nearly unanimous support throughout the Bay Area. This is a win for everyone involved.”

Caltrain’s outdated diesel trains have reached the end of their useful life. The Peninsula Corridor Electrification Project is a $1.98 billion investment to replace the fleet of diesel locomotives with high-performance electric trains between San Jose and San Francisco.

Construction will put 9,600 people to work across 13 states. When finished, the new trains will double ridership to 110,000 daily trips, reduce travel times between San Jose and San Francisco by 15 percent, cut emissions by 97 percent to prevent 24,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide pollution yearly, and save more than 600,000 vehicle-miles each day on heavily congested freeways