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Urgent Inspection Tour Underscores Critical Need for Swift Action to Preserve Key Transportation Link and Economic Engine for Southern California after months of limbo.
Mike Levin, a US Representative for California's 49th congressional district, has finally taken action to address the critical issue facing San Diego's coastal rail line. In a recent inspection tour, he accompanied Amit Bose, the top federal railroad administrator, to survey the endangered areas along the Del Mar bluffs and San Clemente.
The coastal line serves as San Diego's only passenger rail link to the rest of the United States and is a crucial supply line for Navy and Marine Corps installations in the area. The corridor is the second busiest intercity passenger rail corridor in the US, generating an annual revenue of $1 billion in goods and services.
“This visit was timely because we’re seeing the detrimental effects of coastal erosion on this rail corridor in San Clemente and Del Mar right now,” Levin said.
Despite the evident urgency of the situation, Levin had yet to take any significant action to address the issue until now. The tour comes as the rail line is increasingly threatened by erosion, and the tracks in San Clemente were closed for six months for emergency stabilization.
Levin has requested $4 million in funding to relocate 11 miles of the rail line inland to protect it from further erosion. During the tour, administrator Bose stressed the need to preserve the LOSSAN Corridor as a key transportation link and economic engine for Southern California.
Despite Levin's delayed response to the issue, the inspection tour has highlighted the critical need for swift action to protect San Diego's coastal rail line. It remains to be seen whether Levin's proposed funding will be approved, but the urgency of the situation cannot be ignored any longer.