Caltrain Board of Directors Approves Operating and Capital Budgets, Discusses Plans to Restore Service

 

Caltrain’s Board of Directors approved its operating and capital budgets for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 at the rail agency’s monthly board meeting.

The $176.7 million operating budget approved by the Board includes $34.6 million in farebox revenues. For the first time in the agency’s history, Caltrain assumes it will receive no contributions from Caltrain’s three partners—the San Mateo County Transit District (SamTrans), the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority and the City and County of San Francisco for the operating budget, however, funds from Measure RR and the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) should be sufficient to cover the agency’s operating needs. This will be the first fiscal year in which Caltrain will have a dedicated non-fare revenue source, due to the passage of Measure RR.

The operating budget includes funding for a planned restoration of service at the end of summer.  While staff is still working on the details of how service will be restored, the railroad plans to significantly increase service in late summer to match the planned expansion of BART service in the same timeframe, and to provide an attractive and competitive regional rail option for students and commuters who are returning to on-site work and learning throughout the corridor. Further updates on Caltrain’s planned restoration of service will be provided at the July Board meeting.      

Caltrain’s $39.2 million capital budget will be funded through a combination of federal, regional and state grants, while it does not assume contributions from its partner agencies, discussions with the partners are ongoing.

The Caltrain capital budget covers long-term infrastructure improvement and maintenance projects including maintenance work on stations and intermodal access, right of way signals and communications, and rolling stock. The capital budget also includes additional funding for the Guadalupe River Bridge Replacement Project, the construction phase of the Grade Crossing Improvements Project, the upgrade of Ticket Vending Machines throughout the corridor and the general state of good repair for the system at large.

Caltrain’s finances were devastated by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and the ensuing dramatic decrease in ridership. The FY2021 budget required the use of a line of credit, but that debt will be resolved with federal funds provided by Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 (CRRSSA).

The FY2022 begins on July 1, 2021 and ends on June 30, 2022.

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About Caltrain: Owned and operated by the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, Caltrain provides commuter rail service from San Francisco to San Jose, with  commute service to Gilroy. Caltrain enjoyed five years of consecutive monthly ridership increases, surpassing more than 65,000 average weekday riders. While the Joint Powers Board assumed operating responsibilities for the service in 1992, the railroad celebrated 150 years of continuous passenger service in 2014. Planning for the next 150 years of Peninsula rail service, Caltrain is on pace to electrify the system, reduce diesel emissions by 97 percent by 2040 and add more service to more stations.

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