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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2017 | VOL LXX ISSUE 9 tccclarion.com f/ccclarion T@ccclarion
GOLD LINE EXTENSION EAST DELAYED 2 YEARS Kevin Alvarez Clarion
The Gold Line arrives at the Azusa Pacific University/Citrus College station on Feb. 20. This stop will be the furthest east for the Gold Line until it is extended out to Montclair by 2025 to 2026. The extension was originally projected to be completed from 2023 to 2024, but will be delayed two years after a review of construction plans.
BY BRIANNA SEWELL NEWS EDITOR
BSEWELL@CCCLARION.COM
The Foothill Gold Line Construction Authority Board of Directors approved an updated work plan and schedule for the 12.3-mile, six station Foothill Gold Line light rail extension from Glendora to Montclair on Jan. 27 according to a press release. The extension was originally projected to be completed from 2023 to
Class Pass trial period nears end
2024. With the schedule change, the Gold Line will now be complete two years later around 2025 to 2026. According to an email update from construction authority CEO Habib Balian, the two-year delay comes after a review of construction plans. Because the freight and Metrolink relocations must happen before the light rail system can be built, the next part of the project is “really two major construction projects in one,” Balian said.
The new dates are based on the “refined” project scope, explained in the advanced conceptual engineering documents and Master Cooperative Agreements with the cities the projects are in, according to a press release. The construction authority added the new information, “resulting in two years of construction being added to the project schedule,” a press release said. “This is the best information we
have to work with until a design-build contractor is hired and provides their plan for the work.” Balian said. The Construction Authority board also “approved an updated financial plan” and costs associated with the two extra years add about $118 million to the estimated budget. “The latest project estimate totals $1,374 million for the six-station Glendora to Montclair extension,” the press release said. “The majority of the funding need-
ed to build the Glendora to Montclair extension is being allocated through Los Angeles County’s Measure M sales tax, which takes effect July 1, 2017,” the press release said. Previous projects such as the Union Station to Pasadena segment in 2003 and Pasadena to Azusa in 2015 were completed on time and under budget. The construction groundbreaking for the new extension east is scheduled for this October.
BY EDWARD RAMIREZ
The Class Pass was offered for a year free of charge to test ridership and frequency to determine if this was something students were interested in keeping. In order to keep the free pass, student fees must increase. “I think Citrus should continue the Class Pass, but the fees for it hopefully aren’t too high,” communications major Mariah Wilson said, a student who uses the Class Pass. “Many students would not be able to make it to class if not for the bus passes, so having them is very important.” Two thousand five hundred stu-
dents at Citrus College benefit from the Class Pass, getting them from home to school and work. “Some students have a means of transportation to class, so the Class Pass is a great alternative,” Wilson said. Another Citrus student who uses the pass, Alejandro Alcala said students “have a budget to stick to and that paying for higher student fees would go above that budget.” Foothill Transit spokesperson Kate Gagnon said from August to December, there were 90,661 boardings of Foothill Transit buses by Citrus
College Class Pass users. Eighteen thousand boardings of Foothill Transit buses were made per month by Citrus College Class Pass users. “Two thousand five hundred students from Citrus College picked up the Class Pass when they were distributed during the Fall 2016 semester and the passes have been used frequently, which is great and helpful for students,” Gagnon said. May is the tentative date for the online vote on whether to raise fees to keep the Class Pass or to not have the Class Pass at all.
STAFF WRITER
ERAMIREZ@CCCLARION.COM
The Class Pass trial period for Citrus College students to ride Foothill Transit bus lines for free is almost over. At the end of the spring semester, students will have an opportunity to keep the free pass by voting to raise student fees. Starting fall 2016, students began using the Class Pass that allows access to Foothill buses in 22 different cities, including the Silver Streak bus that reaches downtown Los Angeles.
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