5. Discussion

5.1. Commission Standard for Considering Settlement Agreements

In this application, Expo bears the burden of proof to show its requested crossing is safe. In order for the Commission to approve any proposed settlement, the Commission must be convinced that the parties have a sound and thorough understanding of the configuration of the proposed crossing, the future users of the proposed crossing, the safety measures that will be employed, and are able to assess the overall safety of the users of the crossing. This level of understanding of the proposed crossing and development of an adequate record is necessary to meet our requirements for considering any settlement. These requirements are set forth in Rule 12.1, which states, in pertinent part:

The Commission will not approve settlements, whether contested or uncontested, unless the settlement is reasonable in light of the whole record, consistent with law, and in the public interest.

As discussed below, we find the settlement agreement consistent with Rule 12.1.

5.2. Reasonable in Light of the Record as a Whole

As reflected in previously filed testimony, the parties held different positions on the crossing proposals initially brought forward by the applicant. After the Commission's 2009 decision, the applicant offered four alternatives, one of which for the first time included constructing a station at the Farmdale crossing.

All parties to this proceeding, with the assistance of the Commission's Rail Crossings Engineering staff, began settlement negotiations in the Commission's hearing room immediately after the conclusion of the September 30, 2009, prehearing conference. A formal settlement conference was held on January 29, 2010, which all parties and the Commission's staff attended.

Although United Community Associations, Inc. and Neighbors for Smart Rail did not join the settlement agreement, they were present during the negotiations and offered their views on the detailed design for the proposed Farmdale station. The settling parties considered the facts and law relevant to this case before agreeing to a specific design for the station, and used their collective and different experiences to produce a station design that offers students and vehicles superior safety.

The settling parties believe that the settlement agreement balances the various interests affected in this proceeding, reflects appropriate compromises of the parties' litigation positions, and is reasonable.

The opposing parties contend that only a grade-separated crossing is safe. As set forth below, we have fully analyzed this contention in accord with our seven criteria for evaluating at-grade crossings and concluded that, on balance, the proposed Farmdale station and at-grade crossing offers pedestrians a safer crossing.

Therefore, we conclude that the Farmdale station alternative shown in the proposed settlement agreement is reasonable in light of the record.

5.3. Consistent With Law and Prior Commission Decisions

The seven criteria from prior Commission decisions for evaluating a proposed grade separation are discussed below.

5.3.1. Public Need for the Crossing

No party contended that the Farmdale Avenue crossing of the Expo line was not needed.

In D.09-02-031, the Commission found that Expo's proposed state-of-the-art system of gates and other warning devices at the Farmdale crossing can be avoided easily by pedestrians such that the previous proposal would not eliminate all potential safety hazards.

The now-proposed Farmdale station addresses directly the greatest risk for pedestrians - trains moving through the crossing at top speed - by mandating that each train come to a complete stop at the station and then proceed through the intersection. All trains going through the intersection will begin at zero miles per hour and only have about 110 feet in which to accelerate before the crossing is cleared. Automatic train protection shall be set on all light rail vehicles such that the vehicle will never exceed 15 miles per hour when the cab of the light rail vehicle is in the Farmdale crosswalk. The Farmdale station shall be constructed such that the rail vehicle operator will have a clear line of sight from the platform to the entire intersection, and the train will not leave the station until the operator has verified that the at-grade crossing is clear. In conjunction with the safety devices and signals for pedestrians and vehicles, the proposed Farmdale station substantially eliminates the risk of high speed collisions.

To assist Expo line patrons and the public in adapting to the Expo line station at Farmdale Avenue, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority will operate its Ambassador program at the Farmdale station for one year. The Ambassador program will provide retired bus and train operators to educate the public about safe practices around light rail tracks and will identify unsafe behavior, as well as reporting any such behavior to the program manager. As provided in the settlement agreement, Ambassador program representatives will be present during peak school transit times of 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The proposed Farmdale station has several advantages over the pedestrian overcrossing, vehicular crossing closed option found practicable by the Commission in D.09-02-031. When considering the overcrossing, the Commission had before it only a limited description of the structure and no specific construction-quality plans. After the decision issued, Expo moved forward with more detailed engineering of the constrained space at the crossing and determined that a nearly four-story tall, approximately 300 feet long structure would be necessary to provide a pedestrian separated crossing. Requiring large numbers of students to move through this lengthy structure with many concealed portions, including two elevators, creates serious safety and policing issues. The entrance to the structure would need to be located near the school building and would also require removal of a significant number of mature trees on the school grounds.

In contrast, the station proposal will place a pedestrian plaza near the corner between the school and the Expo line, with access to the station on that side of the intersection. Both portions of the "split" station will include ticket machines, benches, shelter, and will be lighted and landscaped. The intersection will have a stop light, a well-marked pedestrian crossing, and all required safety equipment. Additional secure parking for school personnel will be available on the northeast corner, which will also provide facilities for campus police. The entire crossing will be open to clear view by police and other monitors. The station proposal also retains a vehicular crossing, which is particularly useful near a school to improve traffic flow during peak use times. The advantages of the Farmdale station alternative persuaded the Los Angeles Unified School District to support the at-grade with a station proposal and it set aside its opposition to the original at-grade proposal which did not include a station.

5.3.3. The Concurrence of Local Community and
Emergency Authorities

As noted in D.09-02-031, Expo reviewed the Expo Line project with the City Bureau of Street Lighting, Fire Department, and other Los Angeles agencies; as well as the California Department of Transportation, and the Commission's Rail Crossings Engineering staff.

The Los Angeles Unified School District and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority are parties to the settlement agreement and encourage the Commission to approve it.

The public's views about the proposed settlement agreement and station were addressed at the June 1, 2010, Public Participation Hearing. More than half of the approximately 85 commenters opposed the Farmdale crossing being constructed at-grade. Many of the opposing commenters supported complete vehicular and pedestrian grade separation. That alternative, however, has not been presented by Expo and, the Commission declined to find such options practicable in D.09-02-031. Expo also contends that as a result of its outreach into the community, the nearby public is satisfied with the revised proposal for the Farmdale crossing. The Commission has received 45 written comments from the public on the proposed settlement. One comment opposed the proposal and the other 44 supported it.

The settling parties state that improving safety rather than lowering cost is the driving factor in their preference for the proposed Farmdale station crossing, but offered no specific cost information.

The Commission's Rail Crossings Engineering staff supported the originally-proposed Farmdale Avenue at-grade crossing. The Staff participated in the settlement negotiations and raised issues that have been addressed. Although not a signatory to the settlement agreement, the Staff has raised no further safety issues with the Farmdale station proposal.

The settling parties noted that the Commission accorded little or no weight to this issue in D.09-02-031 and encouraged the Commission to evaluate the proposal on its own merits.

On balance, the Farmdale crossing station proposal substantially diminishes the safety issues created by a pedestrian at-grade crossing, without adding new safety and aesthetic issues. The station also adds to the neighborhood convenience by providing walkable access to the Expo line for residents and students and retains the vehicular crossing. We, therefore, conclude that the Farmdale station alternative is superior to the pedestrian overcrossing, vehicular crossing closed option.

5.4. In the Public Interest

Numerous Commission decisions endorse settlements and support the public policy favoring settlement of disputes that are fair and reasonable in light of the whole record.2 The Commission's support of this public policy furthers many worthwhile goals, including reducing the expense of litigation, conserving the scarce resources of the Commission, and allowing parties to reduce the risk that litigation will produce unacceptable results.3 Furthermore, as analyzed above, the provisions of the settlement agreement will result in a Farmdale station crossing that is superior to the pedestrian overcrossing, vehicular crossing closed option. We, therefore, conclude that the public interest will be served by approving the settlement agreement.

We find that the requirements of Rule 12.1 have been met and the settlement agreement should be approved.

2 D.88-12-083 and D.91-05-029.

3 D.92-12-019.

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