The Sunnyvale Sun

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Caltrain adding fencing by tracks in Sunnyvale

By Cody Kraatz

Caltrain began installing a series of heavy-duty fences at critical gaps along its San Francisco-San Jose corridor in late March, the latest installment in its ambitious program to keep pedestrians away from its tracks and high-speed trains.

The longest single stretch of the $500,000 project--2,800 feet--will be in Sunnyvale along Hendy Avenue and around the downtown Caltrain station. The sagging chain-link fences will be constructed with strong, durable welded wire fencing in some places, and fences will be replaced where there are none in other spots.

Caltrain identified the locations along its corridor with input from cities, law enforcement agencies and train engineers. Sunnyvale provided a list of the areas where people most commonly cross the tracks illegally.

"In a word, our concern is safety," said Sunnyvale spokesman John Pilger in a recent e-mail. "Trains move faster than most people perceive, and not all the trains stop at Sunnyvale stations. I cannot stress enough how important it is to stay out of a rail right-of-way. A train can take a half-mile or longer to stop."

Crews were to start in San Francisco with 1,050 feet at two locations and work their way down the Peninsula, installing fencing in Redwood City, Menlo Park, Atherton and finally San Jose.

They were expected to finish by the end of June and possibly reach Sunnyvale early this month.

Caltrain has plans for another 41,000 feet of the new fencing at roughly 20 locations along the corridor for a total cost of $2.7 million. The goal is to have a fence along at least one side of its tracks along the entire right-of-way.

The new fencing will replace fencing or fill gaps in the following locations:

* 2,389 feet along Hendy Avenue between N. Sunnyvale and N. Fair Oaks avenues, on the north side of the tracks.

* 313 feet along Hendy Avenue between N. Taaffe Street and the walkway to the northbound Caltrain platform.

* A 30-foot fence and 10-foot gate perpendicular to the tracks at the east end of the northbound platform.

* 91 feet of fencing with a 20-foot gate to wrap around the corner of Hendy and N. Sunnyvale avenues, where there are currently no fences.

For more information or news about Caltrain, visit www.caltrain.org.