Part of an occasional series on L.A. area rail transit projects.
LOS ANGELES — Could LA Metro soon build the nation’s longest, fully autonomous monorail? It’s one of four options being presented to the agency’s board of directors this December, along with three heavy rail alternatives, to bring high-capacity transit to the car-choked Sepulveda corridor.
“We are looking at something that is higher capacity monorail-type service, similar to what we see in other countries, like China, which has the largest monorail line in the world,” explains Cory Zelmer, LA Metro’s project manager for the Sepulveda Transit Corridor project.
Still in the study stage, the project’s goal is to connect the San Fernando Valley with L.A.’s Westside and, in a second phase, with Los Angeles International Airport. Currently, the main transportation option is the heavily congested Interstate 405. Heavy rail or monorail could cut travel times in half.
One of 11 rail projects designated for completion in time for the 2028 Olympics, the Sepulveda line would start at the Metrolink Van Nuys station for connections to Amtrak and the commuter line. It would also connect there with the planned East San Fernando Valley light rail line, which may begin construction in 2022.
But in between the Valley and the Westside stand the Santa Monica Mountains. That means tunneling, and “the more you build something underground the more expensive it is,” says Zelmer.
Two of the three heavy rail concepts would run in a subway for the line’s full length of about 13 miles, but follow slightly different routes, either along Van Nuys Boulevard or Sepulveda Boulevard.
The third heavy rail option would run on an elevated line west from the Metrolink station, above the existing railroad right-of-way, then turn south to continue along Sepulveda Boulevard. South of Ventura Boulevard, in Sherman Oaks, the rail line would descend into a tunnel under the mountains, thereby reducing tunneling costs with a shorter underground segment.
Unlike New York or Chicago, Los Angeles has no other elevated heavy rail line, and noise might be a concern. “That’s something that we would need to study further during the environmental clearance process,” Zelmer says.
Light rail was considered at an earlier stage, but does not have the needed capacity. “This is positioned to be one of the busiest lines in our entire system,” Zelmer tells Trains News Wire. Daily ridership is projected at 122,000 to 137,000.
That’s why monorail was advanced as a fourth alternative. It can climb steeper grades, match heavy rail for capacity, and would require just 35% of the line to be underground. Capital costs are among the lowest of the four alternatives. With driverless trains, operations and maintenance costs are also lower.
Preliminary costs for the three heavy rail options range from $9.9 to $13.5 billion, while the monorail may come in between $9.4 and $11.6 billion.
Included in each alternative would be a new maintenance and storage facility, roughly 20 to 30 acres in size. Three locations are being considered: two near the Metrolink station and one near the Expo Line.
Currently, $5.7 billion is available from Measure M, the Los Angeles County half-cent sales tax approved by voters. Additional funds could come from state or federal sources. Metro is also studying congestion pricing as a way to reduce traffic congestion and raise funds for transit.
Zelmer will deliver the feasibility study outlining these four alternatives next month, but the board won’t act immediately. Instead, the board told Metro earlier this year to secure predevelopment agreements with private firms to further refine the design concepts.
“We’re bringing in parties who would potentially be part of the actual delivery of this project,” explains Zelmer. “We’re bringing them in early so they can contribute to some of these early design challenges that we’re having with the different concepts. They could bring entirely new concepts to the table, and they could help us work out both design solutions and to address any kind of environmental impacts we might be dealing with.”
The request for proposals (RFP) was issued Oct. 31 and the selected firms are expected to be onboard by mid-2020, when the environmental review will begin.
Some community opposition has arisen, mainly in Sherman Oaks, directed toward the elevated rail and monorail options. LA Metro has been holding community meetings and meetings with local neighborhood and business groups.
The San Fernando Valley would be served with three stations for the two subway options and four stations for the elevated heavy rail and monorail alternatives. Four additional stations will serve the Westside: at the UCLA campus; at Wilshire Boulevard where it would connect with phase three of the Purple Line subway, now under construction; at Santa Monica Boulevard; and at the Expo Line.
Projected end-to-end travel time for the heavy rail options are 16-19 minutes. The monorail would take 26 minutes due to its slower running speed.
A future extension beyond the Expo Line to LAX is planned, terminating at the new Airport Metro Connector station on the Crenshaw/LAX line. Most planned routes would be underground. Zelmer says another idea is to continue the Purple Line south to the airport station.
There’s a lot of work ahead if the Sepulveda corridor is to get its transit line in time for the 2028 Summer Olympics.
“Right now, what we’re dealing with is trying to move this forward as quickly as we can,” says Zelmer.
Previous stories in this series:
— LA Metro to prepare for 2028 Olympics with 11 rail projects
— Purple line subway extension tunnels under Los Angeles
— LA Metro on schedule with Blue Line construction work
— LA Metro works to close light rail’s ‘missing link’
