Background and Procedural History

ACTA filed this application on March 19, 2002. ACTA is a Joint Powers Authority created in 1989 to consolidate into a single rail line four lines of railroad between central Los Angeles and the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The new rail line, known as the Alameda Corridor, is a twenty-mile long, multiple-track, high-capacity line that generally follows the original alignment of the SPTC main line to these ports. Much of the new line runs through a tunnel alongside Alameda Street, and is designed to be essentially grade-separated for its entire length.

Rail operations in the Alameda Corridor commenced in April 2002. In addition to eliminating conflicts between railroad and vehicular street traffic and the attendant delays and safety problems, the line has substantially improved the movement of goods, reduced highway congestion, facilitated rail access to the ports, and reduced air pollution and noise in adjunct residential areas. Construction of the Alameda Corridor required numerous grade separation and related projects that were previously authorized by the Commission.¹ This application is concerned with construction of a grade separation for the final remaining public crossing in the Alameda Corridor.

Equilon, whose refinery is located adjacent to the project site, filed a timely protest to the original application. Equilon objected to the design of the grade separation on the grounds that its traffic circulation would be adversely affected, and requested a hearing. ²

The ALJ held a prehearing conference (PHC) in Los Angeles on July 8, 2002, and subsequently set the matter for hearing. Before the hearing, however, the parties mediated their dispute and succeeded in negotiating a settlement. On October 25, Equilon filed a motion to withdraw its protest, which the ALJ granted by Ruling filed November 7. The ALJ also ruled that this application is to be decided ex parte. ACTA supplemented its application twice in accordance with the terms of its settlement agreement with Equilon, and in response to minor design changes suggested by the Rail Safety and Carriers Division and the ALJ. The project we are considering in this decision is the final version that reflects all of these changes.