Commending the Alameda Corridor Trnasportation Authority

COMMENDING THE ALAMEDA CORRIDOR TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY -- (Extensions of Remarks - May 06, 2004)

SPEECH OF
HON. XAVIER BECERRA
OF CALIFORNIA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
THURSDAY, MAY 6, 2004

Mr. BECERRA. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commend the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority (ACTA). Earlier today, ACTA representatives formally presented the U.S. Department of Transportation with the final payments for a loan, including interest, which totals nearly $573 million. This final payment was made 28 years ahead of schedule.

Opened on time and within budget, the Alameda Corridor is a 20-mile rail expressway connecting dock terminals in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to transcontinental rail yards located in downtown Los Angeles. The project proceeds primarily along and adjacent to Alameda Street-with grade separations to safeguard local communities and pedestrian and vehicle traffic-through or bordering the cities of Vernon, Huntington Park, South Gate, Lynwood, Compton, Carson, Los Angeles, and the County of Los Angeles.

Much of the Corridor's success was made possible by an innovative federal loan, which deferred debt service repayments in the early years of the project and allowed for financing at reasonable interest rates through the bond market. In fact, this novel financing approach was the basis for the Transportation Infrastructure Financing and Innovation Act of 1998 (TIFIA), a national program to select projects for credit assistance.

The Alameda Corridor is a project of national significance as it facilitates the movement of commerce from around the world to the entire nation. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach together handle more than 40 percent of the nation's imports by value. More than 2 million jobs nationwide are associated with trade through these ports. These workers, and this country, benefit from the Federal government's role in assuming the early project risk that made the Alameda Corridor possible.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, let me again congratulate the ACTA team for their management of the project and the early loan repayment completed today. The Alameda Corridor is a model project and has set a new standard for excellence. I look forward to working on future "goods movement" projects such as this that will benefit our region and the Nation.

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