April 10, 2001
Dear Attorney General Lockyer:
Pursuant to Elections Code 9005, we have reviewed the proposed initiative related to a monorail transportation system demonstration program (File No. SA2001RF0009).
Key Provisions
The measure statutorily requires the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) to design and construct ten monorail systems statewide, using funds appropriated by the Legislature, in order to test the effectiveness of monorail transportation in different settings.
The measure requires that five monorail systems be located in urban areas and five systems in rural recreational areas. Additionally, priority must be given to testing sites that allow for interfacing with any currently planned or operating monorail systems. The measure also specifies certain design parameters for the systems.
Fiscal Effect
The construction costs for monorail systems built in other cities around the world have ranged in the tens of millions of dollars per mile of rail. To the extent the Legislature appropriates funds for this measure, the costs to the state would be at least in the hundreds of millions of dollars.