Rep. Mark Takano Praises the U.S. Department of Transportation Green Lighting Perris Valley Line Construction Activities

Washington DC – Earlier today, the United States Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration sent the Riverside County Transportation Commission (RCTC) a Letter of No Prejudice, effectively green lighting the RCTC’s ability to incur costs for construction activities for the Perris Valley Line.

 

“I’m pleased that the Department of Transportation issued a Letter of No Prejudice to the Riverside County Transportation Commission, allowing the RCTC to incur costs for the Perris Valley Line,” said Takano. “This 24-mile rail will be a great benefit to the Inland Empire, not only because it will take 4,000 cars off the road each day, but because it will provide thousands of jobs to local businesses. I thank the Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration for processing this request, and I look forward to construction beginning on the PVL as soon as possible.”

 

“Riverside County commuters are one step closer to traffic relief,” said RCTC Chair Karen Spiegel. “Today’s federal action to green-light the Perris Valley Line caps more than a decade of partnership between local and federal governments, the business community, and the taxpayers of Riverside County.  Working together, we can create jobs and improve the quality of life in the Inland Empire.”

 

Construction on the Perris Valley Line had been delayed several times since it was originally proposed in 2007. Because of these delays, the Perris Valley Line was in danger of being required to re-bid for the $75 million in federal funding. The Letter of No Prejudice sent today by the Department of Transportation ends that concern.

 

 

Ms. Anne Mayer

Executive Director

Riverside County Transportation Commission

4080 Lemon Street, 3ed Floor

P.O. Box 12008

Riverside, CA 92502-2208

 

Re: Perris Valley Line Extension

      Commuter Rail Project Request for a

      Letter of No Prejudice for

      Construction and Procurement

      Activities

 

Dear Ms. Mayer,

 

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has completed its review of the letter from the Riverside County Transportation Commission’s (RCTC), dated September 20, 2013, requesting a Letter of No Prejudice (LONP) to incur costs for construction and procurement activities for the Perris Valley Line Extension Commuter Rail (PVL).

 

FTA approves RCTC’s request for an LONP in the amount of $159,049,886. This LONP allows RCTC to incur costs up to $159,049,886 for construction and procurement activities for the PVL as described in the request. As with all pre-award authority, all federal requirements must be met prior to incurring costs in order to retain eligibility for the costs for future FTA grant assistance. The authority to incur costs provided in this letter does not constitute an FTA commitment that future federal dollars will be approved for the project. This LONP expires five years from the date of this letter, or upon approval of a Small Starts Grant Agreement (SSGA) for the project, whichever occurs first.

 

Please contact Roxana Hernandez at (415) 744-2658 with any questions you may have about proceeding under the authority to incur costs provided in this letter.

 

Sincerely,

 

Leslie T. Rogers

Regional Administrator

 

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