Designed to travel through some of the most populated areas in Orange County and to connect with transit, retail, and employment centers, the OC Streetcar was awarded a $28 million state-funded grant for projects that boost public transit ridership and help improve the environment.
The funding comes from the California State Transportation Agency-administered Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), a part of the Cap-and-Trade Program, which seeks to reduce statewide greenhouse gas emissions through transformative rail and transit capital investments.
In addition to the OC Streetcar project, the TIRCP funding will go toward the system-wide roll out of mobile ticketing, making it easier for riders to purchase fares on all OCTA services.
“California’s Cap-and-Trade Program is critical in helping us invest in transit that will provide viable transportation options as Orange County continues to evolve,” said OCTA Chair Lori Donchak. “I appreciate that the state recognizes the importance of the OC Streetcar and this funding moves the project one step closer to fruition.”
The OC Streetcar is planned to travel along a 4.1-mile route from the Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center, through Downtown Santa Ana and the Civic Center, along the Pacific-Electric right of way, and connect to a new multimodal transit hub at Harbor Boulevard and Westminster Avenue in Garden Grove. Up to six streetcars will run along the route, stopping every 10 minutes during peak hours at 10 stations in each direction.
On the current schedule, construction for the OC Streetcar would begin in 2018, with service beginning in 2020. The streetcar is expected to carry more than 7,500 riders a day.