AT
THE STARTING LINE!
WTA SEEKS PUBLIC COMMENTS OF
NEW FERRY ROUTES
Starting in November, the
WTA will hold a series of eight meetings to get public comments for its
environmental studies of its plan to enhance water transit in San
Francisco Bay. Meetings will be held during the evenings throughout the
Bay Area to make it convenient for people to attend them after work. A
late afternoon meeting is scheduled in San Francisco on Tuesday,
November 27, 2001 from 3-6 pm to attract current ferry riders.
"The California
Legislature gave the Bay Area an incredible opportunity to plan
enhancements to our region’s public transit system with more ferries.
The WTA wants the public’s input from start to finish. We are starting
the environmental review studies. It is very important for the public to
take the time to give us their comments during these meetings,"
said Veronica Sanchez, Manager, Community and Government Relations.
The WTA is required to
submit a Draft Implementations and Operations Plan ("The
Plan") for submission to the California Legislature by December
2002. The purpose of the WTA’s Plan is "to increase Bay Area
regional mobility and transportation options by providing new and
expanded water transit services and related ground transportation
terminal access in the San Francisco Bay Area." The WTA must
also review the environmental impacts of its Plan, consistent with State
and Federal laws.
The WTA will do a
programmatic Environmental Impact Review (EIR) looking at four
alternatives for expanding water transit. The WTA will look at system
wide impacts — the "big picture!" It will not study the
environmental impacts of specific terminal locations, which will be done
after the WTA’s recommendations are approved by the Legislature. Also,
inclusion of sites in the environmental review alternatives doesn’t
ensure that sites will be automatically included in the Draft
Implementation Plan submitted to the Legislature. At this time, it only
means that proposed sites will be assessed for environmental impacts,
level of ridership, and cost-effectiveness.
At the meetings, WTA staff
and technical consultants will be on hand to discuss the four
alternatives and the WTA’s technical studies. Examples of new starting
points for new routes for study in the EIR are:
· Peninsula Corridor:
Oyster Point, Redwood City, Moffett Field
· East Bay:
Richmond, Benicia, Martinez, Antioch, Berkeley
· North Bay:
Port Sonoma/Gnoss Field
· San Francisco:
Mission Bay, Treasure Island
· Airport Connections:
to San Francisco and Oakland Airports
· Recreational
Connections: Linking GGNRA sites
with San Francisco and East Bay locations
For detailed information
regarding the four alternatives and environmental review process, see
the WTA’s website: www.watertransit.org under Environmental
Studies.
